Electricity

Lightning

Lightning generates plenty of electricity. It starts as electrical charges developing inside a cloud. The positively and negatively charged atoms go to different parts of the cloud—the positive at the top, negative at the bottom. When the negatively charged atoms get too crowded, they “jump” to a different cloud or even to the ground: that “jump” causes a spark of static electricity called lightning.

Even though lightning produces electricity, it’s not practical to use that electricity for our power needs. There are too many obstacles—we don’t know when or where lightning will strike, how powerful each bolt will be or how to direct the surge of electricity into our electrical systems. What’s more, the average lightning bolt produces about 250 kilowatt hours of electricity, but the average home uses 936 kilowatt hours of electricity every month. That means that one lightning bolt’s energy could only power one home for about nine days!

Static Electricity

Have you ever reached for a metal doorknob and gotten a shock? That was static electricity at work! But how does that happen?

All matter is made up of atoms that contain protons, neutrons and electrons. Protons have a positive charge, electrons have a negative charge, and neutrons have no charge. Atoms normally have the same number of protons and electrons, and in this state, the atom is “neutral.” But by rubbing things together, you can make electrons move from one atom to another, causing atoms to have a positive or negative charge. That’s static electricity!

So when you walk across a carpet, electrons move from the carpet to you, giving you extra electrons. Then when you touch a doorknob, the electrons move from you to the knob—and you get a static electric shock.