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Thread: Speed of Lightning

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    Default Speed of Lightning

    Hey All,

    Whilst we are on the topic of lightning... Well I have just been looking at the picture uploaded by bambbbam.

    So, I was out watching a thundery earlier tonight I noticed what appeared to be slow moving lightning. As in I could watch it begin and then seem to travel downward or across depending on the strike.

    Are we capable of actually seeing the strike travel or is just my eyes screwing with me?? Maybe it's a NW storm special??

    Further to that, the other night I saw for the first time what appeared to be an upside down strike - this one had one grounded origin and multiple clouded points. Normally I only ever see them the other way around - forking downwards.

    Anyway I love the nightly show up here and need to get off my arse and take the camera to a nice lookout one night

    Hooroo



Look Here ->
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gitch View Post
    So, I was out watching a thundery earlier tonight I noticed what appeared to be slow moving lightning. As in I could watch it begin and then seem to travel downward or across depending on the strike.
    i've noticed this too... i think it's got something to do with the air burning up around the lightning as it ionises it glows/fluoresces???

    watched a doco about this and sprites, elves and such (not the RPG type)... apparently how ozone is created.



    someone correct me here.
    Isuzu MU

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    Geissler Tubes are what you might want to look at for comparison.

    With regards to lightning strikes. Oh, there are so many to describe.
    But if we look at a "simple" frontal system negative ground strike.

    The 'stroke' appears in three stages.
    First a leader extends down from the cloud to just above the ground.
    A streamer then rises up from the ground and meets the feeder.
    Then when both join, the circuit is complete and the main stroke occurs, and quite often
    successive strokes which are the bright part of the strike that we see.

    Air takes time to ionise and glow, in the same way as it is exaggerated in geissler tubes.
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    Is it true that Lightning is normally about the same thickness as a pencil?
    * Bill Paxton is the only actor to be killed by Alien, a Terminator, and the Predator.

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    Quote Originally Posted by bambbbam View Post
    Is it true that Lightning is normally about the same thickness as a pencil?
    not sure.... i do know the ionised air has a particular smell about it, hence why you can smell a storm coming (i can anyway... maybe i'm just weird spidey sense like)
    Isuzu MU

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    the crazy part is, once the circiut has been made, it breaks then goes through the cycle again - inother words following the same path 5-8 times



    so when they say lightning doesnt strike twice


    well actually they are wrong




    f
    Last edited by freakee1; 04-02-11 at 07:34 PM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by bambbbam View Post
    Is it true that Lightning is normally about the same thickness as a pencil?
    Ah, cause for a science experiment ......
    Trash hands bambbbam the metal ruler.

    ok... higher .... higher ..... no HIGHER ..... a little to the left .... great... now stay very still and ....................... wait for it ...........



    I have no idea how thick a stroke is.
    Yes I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.

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    Quote Originally Posted by freakee1 View Post
    the crazy part is, once the circiut has been made, it breaks then goes through the cycle again - inother words following the same path 5-8 times
    Maybe I have weird arse eyes, but you can even see the repetitive strikes over here too... Sometimes the appear to last about a second in length - so plenty of time to run up and measure the width bambbbam

    I'm going to carge my camera and fingers crossed I might get a good shot or three tomorrow

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    We haven't heard from Gitch, I wonder if he got the lightning or the lightning got him ?
    Yes I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.

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    Yeah I'm expecting an answer..
    * Bill Paxton is the only actor to be killed by Alien, a Terminator, and the Predator.

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    Lightning appears to be thicker than a pencil. One would think pencil thickness is not enough to carry the massive amount of amps (tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands).

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    Oh don't worry, I'm still lingering about - waiting for the perfect storm... Actually we had a !@#$'n incredible one two night ago... Range was about 5km away and hundreds of visible ground strikes

    I tried to catch some strike using a slr camera but there was far too much dirty light about (and not to mention one too many home brews, so I couldn't drive) But I would have to say there bolts are definitely thicker than a pencil. I particular strike which was barely visible through throught the rain appeared to be about 3mm holding the ruler at arms length, but the strike was over 5km away so somebody do the maths on that...

    Funniloy enough though, the speed of the strikes appeared to be faster (as in instaneous) excpet for the odd cloud to cloud strikes. I'd love to get a high speed camera to try to take some measurements if anybody knows who would loan me one??

    It has led me to another project (to which I think I will require elephantitous) but I happen to have a unused weather balloon tied to a lengthy piece of copper wire and set afloat into an angry towering cu. I was watching the rockets the use on youtube

    ionised air is conductive isn't it??

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    Oh, you are so going to die

    I've don't this with some ordinary helium filled party balloons and some very thin copper wire. About 10m long. funny to see lightning strike it. Lightning is rather crooked, but when it strikes the wire, it has a straight section to the stroke.

    I'd love to let one loose with 100m of wire, but I can't think of any way of releasing it without risking getting vapourised. I haven't been struck by lightning yet, and despite some close calls, I ain't planning on letting them get any closer.
    Yes I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.

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    Yep I have been electrocuted (power point, not lightning!) and it isn't a whole barrel of laughs.
    * Bill Paxton is the only actor to be killed by Alien, a Terminator, and the Predator.

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    Haha! Thanks Trash!!

    I was thinking of keeping all rf for a remote release... But then I remember that lightning is rather noise... So perhaps fibre optics? Mmmm fun times hehe, who's got an enemy to tie the end to?

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    Something not mentioned is that when you concentrate on watching or doing something the brain is able to speed up making things slower than usual. I have not seen a discussion of what is going on there but I can assure you that in martial art full contact fights its as if the brain gets more time between each image taken in . EG 50 frames a second instead of 10 -that sort of ratio.

    Reaction times get much faster and you can predict what's coming . Its a huge advantage .
    Perhaps intense scrutiny ofthe lightening is doing this for you without you being aware of it yet ?
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