How does lighning work?

Answer 1

Lightning rods provide an earthed conduit for the charge to flow along. The energy moves through the rod, through the attached cable and into the ground, dissipating with no ill effects. This as opposed to going through the house or building and setting parts on fire or destroying the circuitry.

Answer 2

When there is vigorous motion in the clouds, there are electrical charges developed - particularly if the clouds are not too moist.

But eventually, the electrical charge on the cloud becomes sufficient to form an electrical path through the cloud, and down to the Earth where the surplus charge is discharged.

That is the short answer, and some of the phenomena are not well understood.

You could have a crack at Lightning in Wikipedia.

Answer 3

A lightening conductor works by providing a much easier path for current to flow to earth than through the building.

A lightening conductor is made from a thick metal copper wire or strip that connects a spike that is secured onto the tallest point of a building to a long copper earth pole that is hammered deep into the ground at the side of the building. In the event of a direct lightning strike, the current in the conductor may be so great as to melt or even vaporize the metal, but the damage to the building will nevertheless be limited.

Answer 4

Heat lightning is not a special kind if lightning. It is simply ordinary lightning that is too far away for the thunder to be heard. Generally, you cannot hear thunder from a storm more than 10 miles away.

Answer 5

The friction between molecules of water in a cloud causes a charge to build up - positive charge in the top of the cloud and negative charge at the bottom.

In the negatively charged part the atoms have more electrons than usual. When the negative charge becomes strong enough, these electrons form a bridge down to the ground. This is lightning.

The air around the lightning becomes very hot, causing it to send out shock waves. These shock waves are heard as lightning.