What Causes the ‘Flash’ of a Lightning Strike?

Lightning is like a super-fast flash because of energy. When clouds rub together, they make electric charges, and when the charge gets too big, it jumps, boom! That’s what you see as lightning. The flash happens in a fraction of a second, but it feels like it lasts forever.

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Examples

A flash like a camera going off in the sky.
Like when your hair stands up after touching a doorknob in winter.
It’s as bright as the sun on a cloudy day.

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Categories: Physics · lightning,electricity,atmosphere