Why does lightning only happen in storm clouds and not normal clouds?

Question

Why does lightning only happen in storm clouds and not normal clouds?

In: Earth Science

Answer 1

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.