2006-10-11 17:40:52 · 9 answers · asked by indian g 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Weather
Each lightning flash is about 3 miles long but only about a centimetre wide. It discharges about 1-10 billion joules of energy and produces a current of some 30,000 - 50,000 amps, which heats the surrounding air to over 20,000 degrees Celsius, three times hotter than the surface of the sun (6000 degrees Celsius).
Calculations:
100 joules of energy keeps a 100 watt lightbulb burning for 1 second. So 1 billion joules of energy (the amount in a modest lightning strike) would keep the same single light-bulb burning for just under 120 days.
The average household uses about 500-1000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per month. 1 kilowatt hour is 1000 Joules per second multiplied by 3600 seconds (the number of seconds in an hour); i.e. 3,600000 Joules.
So, the average household consumes about 500 x 3,600,000 = 1.8 billion joules of energy per month. So if you could collect all of the energy contained in one lightning strike it would run just one home for a month.
This sounds like good news, but not all of the energy in lightning is available as electricity - in fact probably less than 1% of the energy (10 million joules or so) could be harnessed as electricity because a large amount has already been wasted heating up the air.
Source:
http://www.thenakedscientists.com/html/Columnists/chrissmithcolumn5.htm
2006-10-11 18:12:07 · answer #1 · answered by ideaquest 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Thunder and lightning are 2 various issues. It regarded such as you have been announcing they have been one element. Thunder is a sound so it for sure does not touch the floor. you're the two ideal. Lightning can the two bypass from cloud to cloud or cloud to floor. All lightning would be risky. in case you right here thunder or see lightning continuously look for a secure shield no remember how the lightning strikes until 30 minutes after the final thunder or lights strike.
2016-12-26 17:03:53 · answer #2 · answered by gerda 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well, 1st off, thunder and lighting are 2 different things,
lighting is what you see, thunder is what you hear.
Lighting can create a LOT of energy, it is sad that with all of the technology we have, we have yet to find a way to harness this "free" electricity
2006-10-11 20:11:24 · answer #3 · answered by brandonjb2004 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
nothing, there's no such a technology to generate it.
but its potencial of millions volt
2006-10-11 17:47:42 · answer #4 · answered by richi rasyid 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
enough to grill 500 people at a time
believe me
2006-10-11 17:44:08 · answer #5 · answered by jay Z 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
abt 12 millon megavolts&more
2006-10-11 18:04:50 · answer #6 · answered by bhargav i 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
in th order of terravolts
2006-10-12 03:41:42 · answer #7 · answered by raghulmad 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
1.21 jiggawatts!
2006-10-11 17:46:18 · answer #8 · answered by Isles1015 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
.
2006-10-12 23:02:28 · answer #9 · answered by pioneer. 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋