Why Do We Have Lightning Storms

The ground s positive charge concentrates around anything that sticks up trees lightning conductors even people.

Why do we have lightning storms. The lightning discharge heats the air rapidly and causes it to expand. To understand why thunderstorms occur more often during the warm months requires some understanding of thunderstorm basics. Owing to the fact thunderstorms are created by intense heating of the earth s surface they are most common in areas of the globe where the weather is hot and humid. Thunder is created when lightning passes through the air.

When lightning strikes finding the right shelter may not always be easy. The temperature of the air in the lightning channel may reach as high as 50 000 degrees fahrenheit 5 times hotter than the surface of the sun. Click here to see if there are any active warnings in your area. Most lightning happens inside a cloud but sometimes it happens between the cloud and the ground.

That s why lightning appears to flicker. Lightning is one of the oldest observed natural phenomena on earth. A build up of positive charge builds up on the ground beneath the cloud attracted to the negative charge in the bottom of the cloud. Most lightning occurs within the clouds.

It can be seen in volcanic eruptions extremely intense forest fires surface nuclear detonations heavy snowstorms in large hurricanes and obviously thunderstorms. Lightning safety tips if you re outdoors. Most thunderstorms last about 30 minutes and are typically about 15 miles 24 km in diameter. How fast the ice develops the depth of the icy portion of the storm and how quickly the precipitation moves within the cloud are important to the lightning process.

There is still much research that needs to be done to fully understand this process. The cdc says that even at 100 feet away the electric current from lightning that runs on the. Look for darkening skies flashes of. Read more about nssl s lightning research here.

Lightning is an electrical discharge caused by imbalances between storm clouds and the ground or within the clouds themselves. That s correct but one thing you should never do during thunderstorms is lie down on the ground. Keep an eye at the sky. The two biggest threats associated with most thunderstorms are lightning and flash floods.

Here are the best tips on what to do if stuck outdoors during a thunderstorm. What we see as a flash of lightning may actually be four different strokes in exactly the same place one right after another.