Lightning and Lightning Protection System

This model shows the **principle of lightning**. Lightning is the visible **discharge of electricity** that occurs when a region of a cloud acquires an excess of an electrical charge, either positive or negative, that is sufficient to break down the resistance of air.



Lightning is usually associated with **cumulonimbus clouds**. Lightning occurs when regions of excess **positive** and **negative** charge develop within the cloud. ***A positive charge is in the upper regions of the cloud, a negative charge in the center, and a small positive charge in the lower regions***. These charges reside on water drops, ice particles, or both.



A lightning bolt is roughly **five times hotter than the surface of the sun**. Lightning flashes more than **3 million times a day** worldwide. Not all of those flashes hit the ground. Some of them happen between or inside clouds. An average lightning bolt can release enough energy to operate a 100-watt light bulb for more than three months straight. Lightning kills about 2,000 people a year.