Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Explosive generated Lightning

Trotsky - 20-8-2016 at 03:11

Hello, I have been reading about volcanic lightning and I got to thinking about the ability to replicate this in an explosive. The phenomenon can be replicated in the lab using pressurized ash material and gas, I believe that the silica beads formed are important as glass beads were used in one study. I'll try to post links later for this when I'm not on my phone, I wanted to post quick while I had it in mind. Explosives obviously generate high, rapidly dropping pressures that seem to be key, the issue would seem to be getting the components and perhaps the physical arrangement correct if they cannot all he generated in situ.

Of much practical use? No, not likely, but it would be pretty cool to generate lightning explosively. Air detonation of an explosive followed rapidly by lightning? That would be up there with nuclear devices in terms of "cool" effects, and certainly more display-able.

Metacelsus - 20-8-2016 at 03:55

Some sort of flux compression generator might be a more effective idea.

careysub - 20-8-2016 at 07:19

Quote: Originally posted by Metacelsus  
Some sort of flux compression generator might be a more effective idea.


Right.

There is a rich body of literature on creating "pulsed power" with explosives (Google it):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explosive-driven_ferromagnetic...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explosively_pumped_flux_compre...

One such was invented by Sakharov.

Expensive but:
https://www.amazon.com/Explosive-Pulsed-Power-Larry-Altgilbe...

MineMan - 20-8-2016 at 11:13

I have some silicon powder, which of course will oxidize (with OB +) into SiO2 which of course is glass. It works just like aluminum powder with ANNM mixtures. Please let me know if you would like a test performed, you can design it?

Morgan - 20-8-2016 at 17:14

Here it sounds like the glass beads are an after the fact effect of lightning. The dust bowl days in Oklahoma produced tremendous static charges on wire fences and cars.

"Within the ash plumes of explosive volcanic eruptions, collisions among countless pyroclastic particles sometimes lead to the buildup of static charges that discharge dramatically as volcanic lightning. In a new study, researchers have found that this lightning can, in turn, melt and fuse ash particles into distinctive glassy grains called spherules."
http://www.earthmagazine.org/article/volcanic-lightning-turn...

Sulfur, dirt, flour, rust, caol, grain, catalyst, etc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sSqzLPMb4s#t=12m21s

"Under intermediate conditions, however, we observe dramatic charging, with the most highly charged particles found preferentially near the top of the agitated bed,” they say."
How Sandstorms Generate Spectacular Lightning Displays
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/418236/how-sandstorms-gen...

[Edited on 21-8-2016 by Morgan]

PHILOU Zrealone - 21-8-2016 at 11:14

Even oïl (insulating by definition) when agitated in certain pumps allows for high static build up and lightning.

Bot0nist - 21-8-2016 at 11:48

Kind of off topic, but in a book called State of Fear the antagonists used an array of model rockets, each of which was attached to a long, grounded copper lead, to generate large amounts of cloud to ground lightning by launching them during a thunderstorm. In this work of fiction, it was explained that the lightning actually serves to increase the length and violence of the thunderstorm they were launched into. I realize this has no relation to the topic, but it reminded me of it, and I thought it was interesting enough to mention.

Fulmen - 21-8-2016 at 12:33

That method is in use for studying lightning.

curiosity_cat - 1-7-2017 at 00:54

Quote: Originally posted by Bot0nist  
Kind of off topic, but in a book called State of Fear the antagonists used an array of model rockets, each of which was attached to a long, grounded copper lead, to generate large amounts of cloud to ground lightning by launching them during a thunderstorm. In this work of fiction, it was explained that the lightning actually serves to increase the length and violence of the thunderstorm they were launched into. I realize this has no relation to the topic, but it reminded me of it, and I thought it was interesting enough to mention.


To induce a lightning strike, researchers fire a rocket dragging a wire into an approaching electrical storm. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34NpyA2OuaE

I always thought this could be done with a weather balloon to lift the wire. Might as well use hydrogen.







[Edited on 1-7-2017 by curiosity_cat]