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lightning
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Introduction & Top Questions References & Edit History Related Topics
Images & Videos
lightning discharge
Is ball lightning real?
electrical charge distribution in a thunderstorm triggered lightning
What causes thunder and lightning?
lightning and thunder lightning rod types lightning rod protection system for a residential building lightning: cloud-to-ground Lightning flash striking a tree at a distance of 60 metres from the camera.
Quizzes
Lightning over a farm field. Weather electricity thunderstorm light energy tree
Facts You Should Know: Weather Quiz
Umbrella colored like a rainbow sticking out above a sea of black umbrellas while it rains. (storm, weather)
Weather Words Vocabulary Quiz
rain. Child in the rain, wearing a rain coat, under a yellow umbrella. April Showers weather climate rain storm water drops
April Showers to March’s Lions and Lambs
battery. Illustration of battery connected to lightbulb. Power a light bulb with a battery. Battery, Power Supply, Science, Circuit, Currents
Electricity: Short Circuits & Direct Currents
Encyclopaedia Britannica thistle graphic to be used with a Mendel/Consumer quiz in place of a photograph.
13 True-or-False Questions from Britannica’s Easiest Science Quizzes
Related Questions
Read Next
Lightning over the outskirts of Oradea, Rom., during the thunderstorm of August 17, 2005.
16 Questions About Earth’s Atmsophere and Weather Answered
Lightning over a farm field. Weather electricity thunderstorm light energy tree
Can Lightning Strike the Same Place Twice?
Discover
Shah Jahan. Taj Mahal. Mughal architecture. Emperor Shah Jahan fifth Mughal Emperor (reigned 1628-1658) India, Himachal Pradesh, Basohli or Jammu and Kashmir, Mankot, circa 1690 Drawings; Opaque watercolor, gold, and ink on paper (see notes)
6 Important Mughal Emperors
Battle of the Alamo from "Texas: An Epitome of Texas History from the Filibustering and Revolutionary Eras to the Independence of the Republic, 1897. Texas Revolution, Texas revolt, Texas independence, Texas history.
6 Wars of Independence
Nazi Germany, Nazi SS troops marching with victory standards at the Party Day rally in Nuremberg, Germany, 1933. (Schutzstaffel, Nazi Party, Nurnberg)
Why Was Nazi Germany Called the Third Reich?
Illustration for Demystified "How Dangerous is Quicksand"
How Deadly Is Quicksand?
July, 2006, Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery STS-121. See attached for full caption information.
Will Light-Speed Space Travel Ever Be Possible?
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What is Holy Week?
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Titanosaurs: 8 of the World's Biggest Dinosaurs

lightning: Related Content

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News •

On This Date: Lightning Sparked California Oil Fire Spawned Tornadoes • Apr. 8, 2025, 1:50 AM ET (The Weather Channel)
Lightning Triggered by Space Phenomena, Physicists Reveal • Mar. 22, 2025, 12:11 AM ET (Newsweek)

Photos and Videos

lightning discharge
electrical charge distribution in a thunderstorm
triggered lightning
lightning and thunder
lightning rod types
lightning rod protection system for a residential building
lightning: cloud-to-ground
Lightning flash striking a tree at a distance of 60 metres from the camera.
Lightning over Oradea, Romania
thunderstorm: rain and lightning
Is ball lightning real?
What causes thunder and lightning?
Discover how rapid updrafts of warm air form cumulonimbus clouds resulting in heavy rains and lightning
Learn the science of lightning strikes and see how Faraday cages or Faraday suits channel lightning away from the objects they contain
Observe the density of lightning flashes in a typical year with its highest rate in South America, Africa, and Australasia
See All Videos and Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Charles Steinmetz.
Charles Proteus Steinmetz
American engineer
C.T.R. Wilson, 1927
C.T.R. Wilson
British physicist
Ebenezer Kinnersley
American scientist

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Lightning over a farm field. Weather electricity thunderstorm light energy tree
Facts You Should Know: Weather Quiz
rain. Child in the rain, wearing a rain coat, under a yellow umbrella. April Showers weather climate rain storm water drops
April Showers to March’s Lions and Lambs
battery. Illustration of battery connected to lightbulb. Power a light bulb with a battery. Battery, Power Supply, Science, Circuit, Currents
Electricity: Short Circuits & Direct Currents
Umbrella colored like a rainbow sticking out above a sea of black umbrellas while it rains. (storm, weather)
Weather Words Vocabulary Quiz
Encyclopaedia Britannica thistle graphic to be used with a Mendel/Consumer quiz in place of a photograph.
13 True-or-False Questions from Britannica’s Easiest Science Quizzes
List
Lightning over the outskirts of Oradea, Rom., during the thunderstorm of August 17, 2005.
16 Questions About Earth’s Atmsophere and Weather Answered
Demystified
Lightning over a farm field. Weather electricity thunderstorm light energy tree
Can Lightning Strike the Same Place Twice?