How does lightning restore electrical balance?
What will be an ideal response?
The earth has a surplus of electrons and is about 300,000 volts negative with respect to the ionosphere. This means that a person of average height, while standing, is covered from foot to head by a potential gradient of about 260 volts. The typical reaction to this statement is "Why doesn't the person feel a shock?" Electrical shock is measured in terms of current, and the current in this case is infinitesimal. (The air-Earth current is calculated to be between 1400 amperes and 1800 amperes or about 0.000,009 ampere per square mile.) But the total current from Earth is sufficient to upset nature's balance, and lightning is thought to be a natural way of restoring the balance. It is estimated that, on the average, the earth is struck by lightning 100 times per second, and in about 90 percent of these events, electrons flow to the earth. However, there is not full agreement on how this comes about.
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