How did lightning come from?

The decomposition and friction of water molecules in cumulonimbus clouds produce two kinds of static electricity, one is positive charge at the top, the other is negative charge at the bottom, and the ground has positive charge. When these opposite charges meet, strong charge neutralization will release a lot of light and heat, forming lightning.

The length of lightning may be only a few hundred meters (the shortest is 100 meters), but the longest is also several kilometers. The temperature of lightning varies from 17000 degrees Celsius to 28000 degrees Celsius, which is 3 ~ 5 times the surface temperature of the sun. The extreme heat of lightning caused the air along the way to expand violently. Air moves very fast, so waves are formed and sounds are made.

If we apply a high voltage between two electrodes, they will be closer together. When two electrodes are close to a certain distance, there will be an electric spark between them, which is called "arc discharge".

The lightning generated by thunderstorm clouds is very similar to the arc discharge mentioned above, except that lightning is fleeting, but the spark between electrodes can exist for a long time. Because the high voltage between the two electrodes can be artificially maintained for a long time, it is difficult to replenish the charge in the thunderstorm cloud immediately after discharge. When the accumulated charge reaches a certain amount, a strong electric field is formed between different parts of the cloud or between the cloud and the ground. The average electric field intensity can reach several thousand volts/cm, and it can be as high as 10000 volts/cm in some areas. Such a strong electric field is enough to break through the atmosphere inside and outside the cloud, so dazzling flashes are excited between the cloud and the ground or between different parts of the cloud and between different clouds. This is what people often say about lightning.