1.
Formation of Thunderclouds
Lightning begins in cumulonimbus clouds (thunderclouds). Inside these tall storm clouds, strong updrafts and
downdrafts cause water droplets, ice crystals, and hail to collide.
● Collisions transfer electrical charges:
○ Lighter ice crystals become positively charged and are carried upward.
○ Heavier hailstones and water droplets carry negative charge downward.
This process is called charge separation, and it creates a huge electric field inside the cloud.
2. Charge Distribution
By the end of this process:
● The top of the cloud becomes positively charged.
● The bottom becomes negatively charged.
● The ground beneath the cloud becomes positively charged, because the negative charges in the cloud
push electrons in the ground deeper away, leaving the surface positively charged.
This sets up a potential difference (voltage) between the cloud and the ground — often in the range of
hundreds of millions of volts.
3. The Breakdown of Air
Air is normally a very good insulator. But when the electric field between the cloud and ground becomes strong
enough (around 3 million volts per meter), it ionizes the air molecules.
● Electrons are stripped from air molecules, turning the air into plasma (a conductor).
● Once this happens, electricity can flow through the ionized path.
4. The Lightning Process
Lightning occurs in several stages:
1. Stepped Leader
○ A faint, invisible channel of ionized air (a plasma path) forms from the cloud toward the ground.
○ It moves in rapid, jagged steps of about 50–100 meters each.
○ Several branches may form, “searching” for a connection with the ground.
2. Upward Streamer
○ When the stepped leader nears the ground, objects on Earth (trees, buildings, people) send
positive streamers upward to meet it.
3. Return Stroke
○ As soon as the stepped leader connects with one upward streamer, a powerful surge of current
travels upward from the ground to the cloud.
○ This is the bright flash of lightning we see — it heats the air to about 30,000 K (five times hotter
than the Sun’s surface).
4. Subsequent Strokes
○ Multiple discharges can follow along the same path in quick succession, giving lightning its
flickering look.
5. Thunder
The intense heat causes the air to expand explosively, creating a shock wave.
● Close to the strike: this shock wave is supersonic, creating a sharp crack.
● Further away: it becomes a rolling rumble, as sound waves bounce off objects and terrain.
6. Types of Lightning
● Cloud-to-Ground (CG): Most familiar type, dangerous to people.
● Intra-Cloud (IC): Lightning within a cloud (most common).
● Cloud-to-Cloud (CC): Between separate clouds.
● Cloud-to-Air (CA): Discharge into the surrounding air.
● Ball Lightning (rare): A glowing, floating sphere of energy.
7. Current and Energy
● A typical lightning bolt carries about 30,000–100,000 amperes of current.
● The energy released is equivalent to a few hundred kilograms of TNT.
● Despite the huge voltage and current, lightning lasts only a fraction of a second.
✅Lightning
Summary:
is a giant electrical discharge caused by charge separation in storm clouds. When the electric field
becomes strong enough, it ionizes the air, creating a conductive path. This allows charges to flow suddenly in a
bright flash, heating the air and producing thunder.
