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May 5, 2022 · Lightning is an incredible force of nature. And like many natural phenomena, lightning is not always what it seems. Go behind the mystery and learn what's really going on when lightning strikes.
- Electrical Storms
A lightning bolt is hotter than the surface of the sun....
- Ionization
The tallest objects in a storm don't always get struck by...
- Lightning Rods
Lightning can "jump around" when it strikes.This "jumping"...
- How Lightning Works
Lightning is one of nature's most dramatic, and also one of...
- Electrical Storms
People also ask
How does Lightning work?
How does Lightning form?
What is lightning & how does it affect a cloud?
Why is lightning a natural spark?
- Seeing Lightning
- Lightning’s Partner
- Conditions Needed For Lightning to Occur
- Lightning Production
- Monitoring Lightning
- Red Sprites
- St Elmo’s Fire
Lightning is visible as a flash of blue-white light. The extremely high temperatures generated heat the air molecules to a state of incandescence (white hot) such that they emit a vivid white light. At the same time, nitrogen gas (the dominant gas in the atmosphere) is stimulated to luminesce, producing bright blue-white. The combination of light f...
Temperatures in the narrow lightning channel reach about 25,000°C. The surrounding air is rapidly heated, causing it to expand violently at a rate faster than the speed of sound, similar to a sonic boom. At about 10 m out from the channel, it becomes an ordinary sound wave called thunder. Thunder is effectively exploding air, and when heard close t...
It is the formation and separation of positive and negative electric charges within the atmosphere that creates the highly intensive electric fieldneeded to support this natural spark discharge that is lightning. The formation of electric charges in the atmosphere is due mainly to the ionisation of air molecules by cosmic rays. Cosmic rays are high...
As the area of negative charge at the base of the thundercloud builds up, it induces a region of positive charge to develop on the ground below. As a result of this, a potential difference or voltage is created across the cloud-to-ground gap. Once the voltage reaches a certain strength, the air between the base of the cloud and the ground develops ...
A worldwide lightning location network (WWLLN, pronounced ‘woollen’) was founded in New Zealand in 2003. Working with the collaborationof scientists from around the world, the network plots lightning discharge locations seconds after they occur. Around the world, there are about 45 lightning flashes per second. Apart from generating the characteris...
High above thunderstorm clouds at altitudes between 50–90 km, large-scale electrical discharges can occur. These are triggered by thundercloud-to-ground lightning activity. They appear as fleeting, luminous, red-orange flashes and take on a variety of shapes. Unlike ‘hot plasma’ lightning, they are cold plasma forms somewhat similar to the discharg...
In the region between a thundercloud and the ground, a very strong electric field can be set up. There is a huge potential difference (voltage) established between the negative base of the cloud and the positive ground. When this potential difference reaches a certain value, sharp-pointed ground-based objects are seen to glow, often with a hissing ...
Lightning occurs commonly during thunderstorms as well as other types of energetic weather systems, but volcanic lightning can also occur during volcanic eruptions. Lightning is an atmospheric electrical phenomenon and contributes to the global atmospheric electrical circuit.
Lightning is a giant spark of electricity in the atmosphere between clouds, the air, or the ground. In the early stages of development, air acts as an insulator between the positive and negative charges in the cloud and between the cloud and the ground.
2 days ago · lightning, the visible discharge of electricity that occurs when a region of a cloud acquires an excess electrical charge, either positive or negative, that is sufficient to break down the resistance of air. Is ball lightning real? Learn about the mysterious phenomenon of ball lightning. See all videos for this article.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Oct 19, 2023 · Lightning is a product of a planet ’s atmosphere. Raindrops very high up in the sky turn to ice . When many small pieces of these frozen raindrops collide with each other in a thundercloud , they create an electrical charge.
Apr 5, 2023 · The conditions needed to produce lightning have been known for some time. However, exactly how lightning forms has never been verified, so there is room for debate. Leading theories focus around separation of electric charge and generation of an electric field within a thunderstorm.
