There are fluctuations in temperature, humidity, pollutants, dust particles, etc. in the air, and so the resistance varies. As a result, lightning strikes are often observed in a zigzag pattern.
A bolt of lightning is created when the buildup in electrical charge is enough to create a channel between the two opposite-charged particles. In the moment when these two charges connect….
The answer is that that is the reason why lightning always appears to be flickering. In short, it would be fair to say that lightning travels both ways. Don’t forget that lightning looks for the path of least resistance, so anything on the ground, such as tall buildings, towers, trees, or even humans may provide that path of least resistance for a strike.
What is the shape of lightning?
If you have seen lightning, in reality or in movies, you would have observed that its shape is zig-zag. Have you ever wondered why lightning is not a straight line?
Why does Lightning travel in both directions?
This is another question about lightning that seems to confound many people, so just to clarify, lightning actually travels in both directions. The positively charged particles from the ground begin to move upwards through the air to meet the negatively-charged particles that are racing down from the bottom of the clouds.
Air is uneven and irregular, which is why when lightning is formed (due to the potential difference of the charges), it makes sure that the path it chooses is clear, or has the least possible resistance. The path it chooses doesn’t have to be a straight line (remember, a straight line means ‘the least distance’ and not ‘the least resistance’).
Are lightning rods needed?
While lightning rods help protect a structure from a direct lightning strike, a complete lightning protection system is needed to help prevent harmful electrical surges and possible fires caused by lightning entering a structure via wires and pipes.
While researching we ran into the inquiry “Does my home need a lightning rod?”.
Not every home needs lightning rod protection. Isolated houses and houses in elevated, exposed areas run a greater risk of lightning strikes, but tall structures and tall terrain features nearby could give a home good passive protection. Sorry, the video player failed to load.
The next thing we asked ourselves was, what are some alternatives to normal lightning rods?
Some sources claimed there is a lot of disagreement in the lightning protection industry. The system that seems to have the endorsement of most authoritative organizations is to the old standby grounded rod system, which even has codes written around it.