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Global map of lightning frequency--strikes/km 2 /yr. The high lightning areas are on land located in the tropics. Areas with almost no lightning are the Arctic and Antarctic, closely followed by the oceans which have only 0.1 to 1 strikes/km 2 /yr. The map on the right shows that lightning is not distributed evenly around the planet. [5]
The second most lightning density is near the village of Kifuka in the mountains of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, [84] where the elevation is around 975 m (3,200 ft). On average, this region receives 158 lightning strikes per square kilometre per year (410/sq mi/yr). [85]
Sympathetic lightning is the tendency of lightning to be loosely coordinated across long distances. Discharges can appear in clusters when viewed from space. [22] [23] [24] [clarification needed] Upward lightning or ground-to-cloud lightning is a lightning flash which originates from the top of a grounded object and propagates upward from this ...
These electrical discharges can be up to a thousand times more powerful than lightning on the Earth. [109] The water clouds can form thunderstorms driven by the heat rising from the interior. [110] The clouds of Venus may also be capable of producing lightning; some observations suggest that the lightning rate is at least half of that on Earth ...
When seen from Earth, lightning appears both powerful and majestic, but when viewed from space, it can seem a little ghostly. Astronaut spots 'spooky' lightning on Earth from space Skip to main ...
Lightning currents have a very fast rise time, on the order of 40 kA per microsecond. Hence, although lightning is a form of direct current, conductors of such currents exhibit marked skin effect as with an alternating current, causing most of the currents to flow through the outer surface of the conductor. [32]
A new study suggests that cloud-to-ground lightning likely provided the necessary material for the first organisms on Earth to form. All Life on Earth Might Have Started From Lightning, Scientists Say
Side flash: When lightning strikes a taller object, like a tree, some of the current jumps to the victim. Ground current: When the current from a lightning strike travels along the ground.