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KettleManCU7 t1_j4ttvp8 wrote

Reply to comment by EmperorGeek in How does lightning illuminate the sky? by AverageMan282

That statement is partially true. Lightning bolts do illuminate the sky, but it is not due to reflection off of aerosols. Lightning is caused by the buildup and discharge of electrical energy within a storm system. The intense heat of the lightning bolt causes the surrounding air to expand rapidly, creating a bright flash and a thunderous sound. The light emitted from the bolt can be reflected off of clouds and other particles in the atmosphere, which can enhance the overall brightness and create different colors in the sky.

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shifty_coder t1_j4vd0wg wrote

More specifically, when the plasma returns to a gaseous state, the extra energy is released as photons.

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Blakut t1_j4ugwil wrote

>. The light emitted from the bolt can be reflected off of clouds and other particles in the atmosphere, which can enhance the overall brightness and create different colors in the sky.

iusn't that what op said? And without tge atmosphere and clouds and such you'd only see the bolt?

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JonJackjon t1_j4tul30 wrote

I agree with this explanation with a minor addition. The plasma created from the lightning discharge is extremely hot. Extreme heat from anything will give off light. This is why incandescent bulb colors are described in °Kelvin.

I don't know the physics of how a hot specimen emits photons.

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MrNobleGas t1_j4uwokd wrote

You're thinking of black-body radiation, the phenomenon where an object emits electromagnetic radiation purely because it has a temperature greater than zero.

There are electric charges inside the object - nuclei and electrons. This creates electric fields. When an object has temperature, its particles move around, which means they undergo acceleration. A charge undergoing acceleration in an electric field scatters that field (which also happens when that field is what caused it to move), which creates propagations in that field - electromagnetic waves - light. The higher the temperature, the higher the energy, and Planck gives us a direct relation between energy and frequency. Higher frequency means shorter wavelength. Sufficiently hot objects will therefore emit visible wavelength, while something as warm as, say, a human body emits lower-energy infrared radiation.

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