Do you know about Lightning?

Lightning: Nature's Electrifying Phenomenon

In Earth's weather, lightning can be both a terrifying and amazing phenomenon. It's an incredibly potent and erratic occurrence. When a thunderstorm occurs, imbalances within the storm clouds or between the clouds and the earth generate a natural discharge of atmospheric energy known as lightning. The majority of lightning strikes inside clouds.

Formation of Lightning: Let’s break it into several key points

• Thunderstorms produce lightning through an amazing process. It all starts when minuscule ice crystals and water droplets rub against one another within a cloud. They so exchange electrons and accumulate electrical charge, which causes positive charge to accumulate at the top of the cloud and negative charge to accumulate at its base.
• This charge accumulates and extends downward toward the earth, creating an electric field inside the cloud. Imagine the negative charges in the cloud and the positive charges on the ground as a massive, unseen tug-of-war.
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• A leader is a conductive channel created when the air is ionized by a strong enough charge differential. These leaders are reaching down to the earth from the cloud, trying to find a way to let go of the stored electrical energy.
• A lightning bolt is created when a leader discovers a way to an object, such as a tall building or tree, that has an opposite charge. This bolt, known as a return stroke, shoots up the ionized channel quickly, producing the bright flash that is recognized as lightning.

                                             And what about the thunder that follows?

Thunder is produced when lightning swiftly heats up the air surrounding it, causing the air to expand and produce a shockwave.

         Posted By

          Anusree Roy

          Executive Member of 'Nature's Pulse'

          Bachelor of Science in Disaster Management

         Faculty of 'Life and Earth Science'

         Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur