Zigzag Lightning: We all have seen lightning in the sky. Many of us would also be such, who might have seen the terrible scene created by the fall of lightning. Have you noticed that lightning always appears to flash in a zig zag manner? Around the world, lightning strikes the earth about 8.6 million times a day, but it was a mystery till date that why it falls in a zig-zag manner and why it does not fall in a straight line? Now the curtain has been raised from this mystery. Scientists have given the reason why it runs in this sequence. Let’s know…
In fact, the intense electric field in thunderclouds excites the electrons to form single delta oxygen molecule energy. These molecules and electrons build up to form a tiny and highly conducting step, which produces light with an intensity of one millionth of a second. There is a pause at the end of the step because here the step is formed again. After which another bright and shining jump is formed. This process goes on repeatedly.
cause of lightning
Actually, lightning strikes happen when thunder clouds with electric potential of millions of volts connect to the earth. Then a current of thousands of amperes starts flowing between the ground and the sky with a temperature of tens of thousands of degrees. When looking at lightning with the naked eye, we are unable to see many of the details emanating from it. Usually four or five horizontal lines of lightning move from the cloud towards the earth. Lightning starts from the very first lines reaching the earth. Then the next lines are formed one after the other.
News Reels
Electricity runs in several phases
Fifty years ago, high-speed photography uncovered this mystery. These initial bright lines move from the cloud towards the earth in steps of about 50 meters long. Each phase flashes for one millionth of a second. After 500 millionth of a second another phase is formed.
enough metastable conditions
When an energetic electron collides with an oxygen molecule, it excites the molecule to a singlet delta state. It is a ‘metastable’ state, ie it is not completely stable, but it usually does not fall to a lower energy state for about 45 minutes. In this single delta position, oxygen strips electrons from the negative oxygen ions. These ions are then replaced by electrons by binding to oxygen molecules. When more than 1 percent of the oxygen in the air remains in a metastable state, then electricity is conducted in it. So this is the reason why electricity falls in stride, because enough metastable conditions have been created to dislodge a significant number of electrons.
Read also: WhatsApp will now allow you to use your avatar like Facebook, know how to create it
