Lightning which way?

ID:276224
 
Jun 30 2005, 3:29 pm
Hello, I was just woundering which way lightning really goes. I read part of this website http://thunder.msfc.nasa.gov/primer/ , but don't fully understand it. In it it says that the leader going down to the earth is met by a streamer heading upward. Then I think it says this stream continues upward creating termendous amount of energy. So is lightning going upward? Is this termendous energy what explodes the air around it?

-- Green Lime
Jun 30 2005, 3:35 pm
Lightning 'goes' in 360 degrees.
Jun 30 2005, 3:38 pm
Lightning is caused by a difference in charge between the ground and some clouds. I'm not sure which one tends to get the negative charge, but I think it's the ground. Which means that lightning goes upwards - negative charge moves easier then positive charge.

The air doesn't explode, by the way. It just gets heated a hell of a lot, and expands because of it. That's what causes thunder.
Jun 30 2005, 3:47 pm
In response to Jp
Then explain how clouds can jolt other clouds with lightning? Therefore making it about 360 degrees.
Jun 30 2005, 3:56 pm
In response to Crashed
Easy. The clougs get a potential difference with respect to one another, zap.

He's asking which direction the lightning that we see the most, the ground-to-sky stuff, which direction that travels in. It goes up. I think. Incidentally, even if you're argument was correct, you've got the wrong answer. 360 degrees doesn't specify direction in three dimensions. So there, :P.
Jul 1 2005, 3:05 am
In response to Jp
Jp wrote:
Lightning is caused by a difference in charge between the ground and some clouds. I'm not sure which one tends to get the negative charge, but I think it's the ground. Which means that lightning goes upwards - negative charge moves easier then positive charge.

The air doesn't explode, by the way. It just gets heated a hell of a lot, and expands because of it. That's what causes thunder.

Isn't Exploding the same thing as expanding? What are the differences?

And from what I read the bottom of the cload is negetive charged. This charge pushes away the negative charge on the ground exposing the positive. Then when enough potential energy has built. The bolt strikes the ground. I also read that there is multipul strokes which are the reasons for the splitting of the lightning bolt. They just happen so fast it all looks like one stroke.