What happens if a lightning falls into water and/or ocean? Is it really possible?
493265
Yes, it is possible for lightning to strike water.  It happens all the time.  Lightning is the result of a difference in potential between two bodies.  When the potential is great enough, electricity jumps from the negatively charged body to the positively charged body.  The two bodies can be a cloud and a tree, a cloud and the ground or a cloud and water or from one cloud to another.  Therefore, lightning can be cloud to ground, cloud to cloud or even within a cloud.  What happens when the lightening bolt strikes the water is that at the immediate point of the strike, the temperature of the water instantly reaches the boiling point.  Given the extreme temperature of a lightning bolt and the extreme charge, I would suspect that not only is steam formed but a plasma is also likely formed at the immediate point of the strike.  As to what happens to any biological life at the point of the strike, it would depend on how near they are to the strike.  The closer they are to it, the more likely that they could be killed by the sudden change in temperature and potential.
375503
Space.  No kidding.  Sprites and Elves show us that the energy is coming from way up in the ionosphere, which is the outer boundary of the Earth's electric field.  Unfortunately, all the scientists we have nowadays are stupid or the satellites have been hijacked by someone who doesn't want us to know what causes lightning. Either way, it's not official yet.  But with all the crazy weather we've been getting nowadays and with all the awesome thunderstorms that cause hundreds of thousands of cloud to ground strikes, it shouldn't be too long before somebody realizes all this energy has to be coming from somewhere other than the clouds themselves.
1183282
NO.\n\nIt is only an effect of a cloud being illuminated by a distant lightning flash.
28574
Lightning can happen when it snows.  The reason lighting happens is because the air in the clouds is negatively charged compared to the ground (making the clouds (-) and the gorund (+)).  The clouds usally get this way in dry conditions cause there is less moisture in the air to stop air molecules from rubbing up against one another and creating excess energy (a negative charge).  Well since the clouds are (-) it needs a way of getting rid of some energy so it can be neutral (n).  It does this by passing some energy in to the (+)  ground, which also want to be (n).  This passing of energy rips throught the (n) air in between the (-) clouds and the(+) ground and creats the effect of lightning.  Now the reason it usually doesn't happen when it snow is because of the moisture in the air being so high, but everyonce in a while the air become dry enough when it snow to produce lightning.
1148847
No.\n\nThe electric charge that causes lightning on the Earth, Jupiter and Saturn is built up in the atmosphere from the solar radiation that hits the atmosphere.\n\nThough the solar particles have an electric charge, without a dense atmosphere, acting as a capacitor to allow the building up of large charges, you don't get lightning bolts. A lightening bolt requires a million volts per meter. \n\nIndividual solar particles interact with other particles but the discharge is of the magnitude of a few electrons worth of charge.  The elves and aurora are caused by solar particles striking the upper atmosphere. But the eleves and aurora are not lightning bolts.   \n\nWithout a dense enough atmosphere there can be no lightning. \n\nThe moon does have a tenuous atmosphere but it is not dense enough to act as a capacitor. \n\nTycho crater was formed from more than one meteorite impact. There was the main impact and then smaller impacts on the big scar.\n\nThe youngest crater is Giordano Bruno and you can see that it has not been overlaid with other impacts.
108122
http://science.howstuffworks.com/lightning.htm
742059
depends also on whether or not your house has lightning protection, most newer houses do...and since water from the garden variety shower is chock full of mineral deposits, yes lightning can fry you...only distilled water is safe to bathe in, since there are no minerals in it...pure water is an insulator, water from your shower is not exactly pure, so the shock travels thru the suspended mineral particles.
757146
Lightning is one of the oldest observed natural phenomena on earth. At the same time, it also is one of the least understood. While lightning is simply a gigantic spark of static electricity (the same kind of electricity that sometimes shocks you when you touch a doorknob), scientists do not have a complete grasp on how it works, or how it interacts with solar flares impacting the upper atmosphere or the earth's electromagnetic field.\nLightning has been seen in volcanic eruptions, extremely intense forest fires, surface nuclear detonations, heavy snowstorms, and in large hurricanes. However, it is most often seen in thunderstorms.At any given moment, there can be as many as 2,000 thunderstorms occurring across the globe. This translates to more than 14.5 MILLION storms each year. NASA satellite research indicated these storms produce lightning flashes about 40 times a second worldwide.This is a change from the commonly accepted value of 100 flashes per second which was an estimate from 1925. Whether it is 40, 100, or somewhere in between, we live on an electrified planet.\n\nThe Sound of Thunder\nRegardless of whether lightning is positive or negative, thunder is produced the same way. Thunder is the acoustic shock wave resulting from the extreme heat generated by a lightning flash. Lightning can be as hot as 54,000°F (30,000°C), a temperature that is five times the surface of the sun! When lightning occurs, it heats the air surrounding its channel to that same incredible temperature in a fraction of a second.\n\nLike all gases, when air molecules are heated, they expand. The faster they are heated, the faster their rate of expansion. But when air is heated to 54,000°F in a fraction of a second, a phenomenon known as "explosive expansion" occurs. This is where air expands so rapidly that it compresses the air in front of it, forming a shock wave similar to a sonic boom. Exploding fireworks produce a similar result.\n\nWhat is the difference between a thundershower and a thunderstorm?  \nTechnically, there is none. In general, the term "thundershower" tends to denote a fairly weak storm with light to moderate rainfall and low levels of lightning activity. However, there are no defined parameters that distinguish between a thundershower and a thunderstorm. In fact, in order to avoid confusion, we in the National Weather Service do not use the term "thundershower". If a shower is strong enough to produce lightning, even just one single bolt, it's called a thunderstorm.\n\nTo Learn More about Lightning and Thunder go to \nhttp://www.srh.weather.gov/jetstream/lightning/lightning_intro.htm\n\nLIGHTNING SAFETY A MUST READ\nLightning is the MOST UNDERRATED weather hazard. On average, only floods kill more people. Lightning makes every single thunderstorm a potential killer, whether the storm produces one single bolt or ten thousand bolts.\n\nIn the United States, lightning routinely kills more people each year than tornadoes and hurricanes COMBINED. Tornadoes, hail, and wind gusts get the most attention, but only lightning can strike outside the storm itself. Lightning is the first thunderstorm hazard to arrive and the last to leave.\n\nLightning is one of the most capricious and unpredictable characteristics of a thunderstorm. Because of this, no one can guarantee an individual or group absolute protection from lightning. However, knowing and following proven lightning safety guidelines can greatly reduce the risk of injury or death. Remember, YOU are ultimately responsible for your personal safety, and should take appropriate action when threatened by lightning.\n\nWhile no place is 100% safe from lightning, some places are much safer than others.\nWhere to Go Where NOT to Go \nThe safest location during a thunderstorm is inside a large enclosed structure with plumbing and electrical wiring. These include shopping centers, schools, office buildings, and private residences.\n\nIf lightning st
569824
In reality, normal water is a very weak conductor. It is possible to be electricuted while in the water, as in the bathtub example, but in the open waters, only things in very close proximity to the lightning strike will be affected. In actuality, pure water doesn't conduct electricity at all, but when things are dissolved in the water it can carry a current. This also explains why being shocked in your bathtub is more prominent- there are soaps and oils dissolved in the water.
216544
Ordinarily, wood is not a conductor of electricity...\n\nBut not for lightning...It strikes the tallest object in an area. If you are under a tree or within its vicinity, if lightning strikes the tree, then it may likely hit you, too, due to its very high voltage (it may reach several thousand or even million volts)...\n\nIf lightning hits you, you will be lucky if you survive...
214117
Electricity of any kind, including that generating lightning, is caused by a potential difference in charge between two object-in this case, between the water in the ocean and the storm, which generates ionic imbalance.  The lightning transfers charge from one to the other, equalizing it.  Thus, the charge from the lightning disperses into the water-within a few 10s of feet of the strike, even a large lightning bolt will have dispersed the electrical charge sufficiently that it would not kill fish.  Seawater, though a good conducter, in this case is not conducting the electricity anywhere-it is the terminal acceptor of electical charge.
1088869
Lightning happens because of static electricity.  If you've ever gotten a little spark when you touched a doorknob or something metal, that's static electricity.  It happens because electrons (which make electricity) are "gathered up" in some materials when they are rubbed.  When your feet rub on a carpet, electrons from the carpet get picked up by your feet.  Then when you touch a doorknob or something metal, the electrons jump across to the doorknob, making a tiny spark.\n\nLightning is exactly the same thing, but much bigger.  The water in the clouds "rub" against the air, gathering electrons, until finally a huge spark leaps from the clouds to the ground.\n\nThunder happens right after lightning.  It happens because the lightning is so hot that it heats the air around it, making it expand.  Once the lightning is gone, the air rushes back in with a huge "bang" like giant clapping hands.\n\nThunder can be scary because it's so loud and unexpected.  But since thunder always follows lightning, here's what you can do:  When you see a flash of lightning, start counting, "one-Mississippi, two-Mississippi, three-Mississippi..." and so on until you hear the thunder.  Each "Mississippi" is about one second, and because of the speed of sound each second you count means that the lightning is about one-fifth of a mile away.  So if you can count to "five-Mississippi" before you hear the thunder, that means that the lightning is a mile away.  Knowing that it's that far away makes it not so bad.\n\nI think lightning is pretty neat to watch.  I used to live in the New Mexico desert, and when we had a thunderstorm you could see the lightning branching down from the clouds.  That's a little more interesting than just a bright flash of light.\n\nI hope that knowing more about lightning and thunder will help make it less scary for you.  Try looking up "lightning" on Google, look at some pictures and see how interesting lightning really is.
497622
It doesn't just happen all of a sudden, as OBIWAUGH pointed out, the movement of air caused by the storm causes the clouds to acquire a polarized electrical charge that by nature has to release its energy.\nThat energy is the lightning bolt reaching out to an oppositely charged object to balance the energy.
1065494
When lightning strikes a pool, if you are in it - you are as likely to die as if you were struck directly.  However, this is an extraordinarily rare thing, given that lightning is attracted to highly conductive items that stand out on the terrain (pools dont qualify under those criteria).  If you are in the Ocean, you probably do not have to worry about it, since lightning does not generally strike the ocean.  Lightning prefers to strike the earth because of the negative charge.  If lightning is apearing to strike the ocean, it's either hitting a ship, hitting land, or so close to the horison that it looks like it's striking the ocean.
619415
From a distance, lightning will come before the thunder.  But at the point of the bolt, they occur at the same time.\n\nFrom the source below:\n"Actually, they do occur at the same time. The time difference that you sense is due to the way sound and light travel. Light travels extremely fast (300,000,000 m/s). In fact, it is faster than anything else. Sound travels at a measly 343 m/s through air. Therefore we can see light in an instant, but it takes a while to hear thunder."
1088763
A lot of static electricity in the air can cause "dry lightning".  I assume that is what happened.
1158044
No it isn't!\n\nWhy? Lightning! One of the easiest ways for lightning to travel into your home is through your water pipes, and it will travel right to your body since water has a high conductance. Things to stay away from include phones and computers, since lightning may also travel through the lines that are outside of the house.\n\nRemember, lightning doesn't need a metal object to travel into your home, anything that is a conductor will do. For more information, check out the great page Wikipedia has set up here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_conduction