Lightning

On a stormy night, blinding ribbons light up the sky for a second. This is lightning, and it’s caused by electricity. A storm makes electrical charges. Some charges are negative, and others are positive. The bottom of clouds gets a negative charge, while other parts of clouds have a positive charge. The ground also has a positive charge.

It’s this opposition of plus and minus that makes the lightning. Negative areas try to balance with positive areas by sending out jolts of electricity to even the charges. This moving electricity looks like bright streaks in the sky. The flash of lightning temporarily balances the charges until the opposite charges build up again, and then another lightning strike occurs.