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Sheet lightning is cloud-to-cloud lightning that exhibits a diffuse brightening of the surface of a cloud, caused by the actual discharge path being hidden or too far away. The lightning itself cannot be seen by the spectator, so it appears as only a flash, or a sheet of light. The lightning may be too far away to discern individual flashes.
You may be thinking: But my shower is indoors and the lightning is outside. That may be true, but electricity can still travel indoors through your plumbing system .
Contrary to popular belief, positive lightning flashes do not necessarily originate from the anvil or the upper positive charge region and strike a rain-free area outside of the thunderstorm. This belief is based on the outdated idea that lightning leaders are unipolar and originate from their respective charge region.
Distant lightning near Louisville, Kentucky. Heat lightning (not to be confused with dry thunderstorms, which are also often called dry lightning) is a misnomer [1] used for the faint flashes of lightning on the horizon or other clouds from distant thunderstorms that do not appear to have accompanying sounds of thunder. Heat lightning in Tokyo
Crown flash is a rarely observed meteorological phenomenon caused by the effect of atmospheric electrical fluctuations on the alignment of ice crystals. It has been described as "the brightening of a thunderhead crown followed by the appearance of aurora-like streamers emanating into the clear atmosphere". [ 1 ]
The flash of a lightning strike and resulting thunder occur at roughly the same time. But light travels 300,000 km/sec, almost a million times the speed of sound. Sound travels at the slower speed of about 340 m/sec (depending on the temperature), so the flash of lightning is seen before thunder is heard. A method to determine the distance ...
False signal elimination: A lightning discharge generates both a radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic signal – commonly experienced as "static" on an AM radio – and very short duration light pulses, comprising the visible "flash". A lightning detector that works by sensing just one of these signals may misinterpret signals coming from ...
Green flash occurs because the atmosphere causes the light from the Sun to separate, or refract, into different frequencies. Green flashes are enhanced by mirages, which increase refraction. A green flash is more likely to be seen in stable, clear air, when more of the light from the setting sun reaches the observer without being scattered.