Make Lightning

The lightning that we see during storms is created the same way as static electricity - a discharge of electrons from one place to another. Make static electricity using the directions below to see how lightning works.

What You'll Need

  • Styrofoam plate
  • Metal thumbtack
  • Pencil with eraser
  • Aluminum pie pan
  • Small piece of wool fabric
  • A room that you can make very dark

Directions

  1. A pencil is attached to an aluminum pie pan by a thumbtack poking through the pan into the penci eraser.

    Push the thumbtack up through the center of the aluminum pie pan starting from the bottom. 

  2. Push the eraser end of the pencil down into the thumbtack. (The pencil becomes the handle to lift the pan.)
  3. Put the styrofoam plate upside-down on a table. Rub the bottom of the plate with the piece of wool fabric for about one minute. Be sure to rub the material back and forth really quickly!
  4. Set the wool aside and pick up the aluminum pie pan using the pencil "handle." Place it on top of the upside-down styrofoam plate.

  5. Before the next step, you will need the room to be dark. Once the room is dark, touch the aluminum pie pan with your finger. What did you see when you touched the pan? What did you feel? 

    A pencil is attached to an aluminum pie pan. It is siting on top of an upside down styrofoam plate.

  6. If you don't see of feel anything when you touch the pie pan, try rubbing the sytrofoam plate with the wool again (repeat steps 4 and 5).

 

What's Happening?

How is what happens in this activity like lightning? It's all about static electricity! Lightning happens when the negative charges (electrons) in the bottom of a cloud are attracted to the positive charges (protons) in the ground. 

Rubbing the styrofoam plate with wool transfers electrons to the plate, leaving the wool with a more positive charge and the plate with a more negative charge. When the styrofoam plate is brought near an uncharged aluminum pie plate, it repels the electrons in the pie plate, causing a charge separation within the pie plate. 

Touching the pie plate transfers electrons to your finger, creating a spark of static electricity. The resulting spark is like a mini-bolt of lightning.

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