Talk:Lightning

This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Lightning article.
This is not a forum for general discussion of the article's subject.

Put new text under old text. Click here to start a new topic.
New to Wikipedia? Welcome! Learn to edit; get help.

Article policies

Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs) · FENS · JSTOR · TWL

Lightning was a good articles nominee, but did not meet the good article criteria at the time. There may be suggestions below for improving the article. Once these issues have been addressed, the article can be renominated. Editors may also seek a reassessment of the decision if they believe there was a mistake.

Article milestones
Date	Process	Result
October 31, 2005	Peer review	Reviewed
October 16, 2006	Good article nominee	Not listed

Current status: Former good article nominee

Physics Mid‑importance

	Physics portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Physics, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Physics on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.PhysicsWikipedia:WikiProject PhysicsTemplate:WikiProject Physicsphysics articles
Mid	This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale.

Weather: Thunderstorms / Tornadoes Top‑importance

	Weather portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Weather, which collaborates on weather and related subjects on Wikipedia. To participate, help improve this article or visit the project page for details. Articles Requested Project Resources Become a Member Project Talk Assessment A-Class Alerts WeatherWikipedia:WikiProject WeatherTemplate:WikiProject WeatherWeather articles
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale.
	Tornadoes portal This article is supported by WikiProject Severe weather (assessed as Top-importance).

Upward Streamer Photo

The upward streamer photo looks like a reflection of the main bolt in the lens of the camera (a lens flare), not a positive leader. It even seems to be obscured by an object, just like the main bolt is partially obscured by a tree. Please review the description of that photo since it might be inaccurate. 88.220.51.36 (talk) 14:16, 22 May 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Here's what a lens flare may look like on an iPhone 8 Pro: https://i.imgur.com/6GtLxxm.png 185.238.206.92 (talk) 15:30, 22 May 2023 (UTC)[reply]

I agree that the "upward streamer" appears to be a camera artifact, either caused by a lens flare/reflection or the camera sensor being oversaturated which can create a similar artifact as explained here: https://ztresearch.blog/2017/05/16/blinded-by-the-light/

Upward connecting leaders are generally only seen within around 50m of the main discharge, and they emanate from the tops of pointed objects, and not from a flat object some distance away from the main bolt. PurpleDiana (talk) 04:00, 20 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

I also agree that this is not an upward streamer. I get these "ghost" lightning bolts all the time when filming lightning. It's just lens flare. On top of being too far from the main bolt and not being from a pointy object, the streamer in question looks too curved. Styro.drake (talk) 01:39, 16 January 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Extraterrestrial

Juno managed to image lightning On Jupiter:

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/jpl/nasa-s-juno-mission-captures-lightning-on-jupiter

©Geni (talk) 16:30, 14 July 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Semi-protected edit request on 28 July 2023

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

Re ref for "[...] discovery of the clear signatures of antimatter produced in lightning."

Original link is dead and archive link is no good (content "available to subscribers only").

New links, same source:

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/signature-antimatter-detected-lightning

https://web.archive.org/web/20230728171126/https://www.sciencenews.org/article/signature-antimatter-detected-lightning

2A02:560:5916:9C00:40AB:CA76:BF17:C388 (talk) 17:18, 28 July 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Done — Paper9oll (🔔 • 📝) 17:22, 28 July 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Semi-protected edit request on 13 December 2023

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

There is an informational error under flashes and strikes: discharge: return stroke: last paragraph. Article states "The core temperature of the plasma during the return stroke may exceed 50,000 K." Unit of measure is wrong. Please change 50,000 K to 50,000 F. (Source: https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-thunder#:~:text=The%20lightning%20discharge%20heats%20the,the%20surface%20of%20the%20sun.) 66.29.208.159 (talk) 05:42, 13 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Done I've also added the Celsius equivalent via the convert template. Thanks, Lewcm Talk to me! 13:45, 15 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Featured picture scheduled for POTD

Hello! This is to let editors know that File:Port and_lighthouse_overnight_storm_with_lightning_in_Port-la-Nouvelle.jpg, a featured picture used in this article, has been selected as the English Wikipedia's picture of the day (POTD) for January 16, 2024. A preview of the POTD is displayed below and can be edited at Template:POTD/2024-01-16. For the greater benefit of readers, any potential improvements or maintenance that could benefit the quality of this article should be done before its scheduled appearance on the Main Page. If you have any concerns, please place a message at Wikipedia talk:Picture of the day. Thank you! — Amakuru (talk) 15:04, 8 January 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Lightning is a natural phenomenon formed by electrostatic discharges through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions, either both in the atmosphere or one in the atmosphere and one on the ground, temporarily neutralizing these in a near-instantaneous release of an average of between 200 megajoules and 7 gigajoules of energy, depending on the type. The three main types of lightning are distinguished by where they occur: either inside a single thundercloud (intra-cloud), between two clouds (cloud-to-cloud), or between a cloud and the ground (cloud-to-ground), in which case it is referred to as a lightning strike. Lightning causes thunder, a sound from the shock wave which develops as gases in the vicinity of the discharge heat suddenly to very high temperatures. It is often heard a few seconds after the lightning itself. Thunder is heard as a rolling, gradually dissipating rumble because the sound from different portions of a long stroke arrives at slightly different times. This photograph shows strokes of cloud-to-ground lightning hitting the Mediterranean Sea close to Port-la-Nouvelle in southern France.

Photograph credit: Maxime Raynal

Recently featured: