Why does lightning only happen in storm clouds and not normal clouds?
In: Earth Science
Before I continue, it is necessary to understand what lightning is.
Lightning is the discharge of static electricity between updrafts and downdrafts, negatively charging the cloud, much like a Van de Graaff does.
When the cloud nears the ground it forces away electrons in the ground, inducing a positive charge in the ground facing the cloud.
Lightning is just electrons jumping from the cloud to the ground when it is close enough.
The predominant reason why lightning happens mainly in storm clouds is because these clouds are larger and as a result, have stronger drafts, encouraging friction. This fricton charges the cloud, allowing for lightning to occur.
Let me correct you, lightning does happen on normal clouds. This is called Dry Lightning, which is more dangerous as you don’t expect it.
Lightning is often assumed to occur on storm clouds because the requirments for a lightning is found mostly in storms. This can be from negatively charged cloud colliding with another cloud then to the positively charged ground, and sudden changes in temperature which causes rain.
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