What causes lightning? The answer keeps getting more interesting

5 comments

• nomilk 3 hours ago
  That 7 second video of a small rocket shot into a cloud to induce a lightning strike (about half way down the article) is incredible.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BJIiX9_c_M

  Any ideas why the lightning strike appears mostly green (and momentarily purple and orange)?

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  • deepandmeaning 3 hours ago
    I'm imagining it's something related to the copper wire.
  • teh_infallible 2 hours ago
    I always wanted to replicate this with a helium balloon and a long, wet string coated with copper filings.
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    • batch12 46 minutes ago
      You'd probably need a very large balloon to overcome the weight of the string
    • CamelCaseCondo 47 minutes ago
      Maybe just salt water and skip the filings?
• fguerraz 1 hour ago
  So, nothing new?

  The cosmic ray hypothesis has been dominant for a few years now.

  This magazine…
• cinderelacinder 3 hours ago
  [flagged]
• freehorse 1 hour ago
  Tl;dr lightings may be caused by electrons/positrons from outer space hitting a cloud and initiating an "avalanche" of electrons.
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  • pfdietz 44 minutes ago
    Cosmic rays are mostly protons, not electrons or positrons. You're mixing up to separate theories in the article.
• metalman 2 hours ago
  just in case you missed it, all matter carrys a charge, and all space(and matter) has energy radiating through it, making the universe an energy gradient.

  sometimes you can see it happening.