Most states in our country experience a fair amount of thunderstorms. When we get caught outside, they scare us to death. When we can get inside, we enjoy watching them in safety. Even though we don’t exactly know how lightning happens, we have a pretty good idea. We’ve gone over it here.
How it happens:
Clouds have a lot of moisture, which constantly brushes against each other. This creates friction the same way your sock does on a carpet, causing an electrical charge. These charges line up a certain way (we don’t exactly know why), with the positive charges going to the top of the cloud and the negative going to the bottom. On the bottom, a gigantic electric field gets created that repels the negative charges on the ground. As most people know, opposites attract. However, the charges can’t connect with air blocking them. The electric fields sends out ionized “step leaders” that connect to streamers from the ground, creating a pathway for lightning to strike.
That about sums up the process as we know it. Remember to always exercise safety measures during a thunderstorm. If you require storm damage repair, Dolphin Construction & Remodeling can help. To find out more about our services, please give us a call at (316) 210-9543.