▲What causes lightning? The answer keeps getting more interesting(quantamagazine.org)
67 points by Tomte 2 days ago | 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)?

▲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.
▲batch12 44 minutes ago
You'd probably need a very large balloon to overcome the weight of the string
▲CamelCaseCondo 45 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.
▲pfdietz 42 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.