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The process of spark ignition of fuel sprays in a rapid compression machine was analyzed using high-speed schlieren photography and pressure-time data. The combustion chamber studied simulates in a two-dimensional sense the three-dimensional arrangement of the piston bowl, injector and spark plug in a typical direct-injection stratified-charge (DISC) engine. The test hardware included a flat-seat straight-hole injector, a high-energy ignition system and an extended-electrode spark plug. The influence of amount of fuel injected, ignition dwell period (time between start of injection and start of ignition), swirl rate and direction, and spark-plug electrode-tip location on the ignition process was examined. For the test conditions studied, excessive spray penetration and fuel impingement on the walls was observed.