What kind of electricity is lightning

Science celebrities. Chemistry Chaos. What causes lightning? Lightning strikes! How does lightning form? Lightning is an electric current. To make this electric current, first you need a cloud. Curriculum information Summary Lightning is an amazing natural phenomenon. Colourful, illustrated pages to help children think about light and seeing. Join in Facebook Twitter. Hitching a ride on a spaceship. The site claims there are two kinds of electricity - static and current.

I guess this ok since the definition of electricity is not too clear to me. Here is a table from that site: Here they define current electricity as a steady flow of electrons. Here are a couple of sites that seem to have it correct: Here is a good site on why electricity is a poor word. Rhett Allain is an associate professor of physics at Southeastern Louisiana University.

He enjoys teaching and talking about physics. Environment Planet Possible India bets its energy future on solar—in ways both small and big. Environment As the EU targets emissions cuts, this country has a coal problem. Paid Content How Hong Kong protects its sea sanctuaries.

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Science Coronavirus Coverage U. Travel A road trip in Burgundy reveals far more than fine wine. Travel My Hometown In L. Travel The last artists crafting a Thai royal treasure. Subscriber Exclusive Content. Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars? How viruses shape our world. The era of greyhound racing in the U. Lightning is a discharge of electricity. This extreme heating causes the air to expand explosively fast.

The expansion creates a shock wave that turns into a booming sound wave, known as thunder. As ice crystals high within a thunderstorm cloud flow up and down in the turbulent air, they crash into each other.

Small negatively charged particles called electrons are knocked off some ice and added to other ice as they crash past each other. The top of the cloud becomes positively charged while the base of the cloud becomes negatively charged.