What is lightning?

Did you sleep through the electrical storm last night? There were so many lightning strikes I simply pointed my digital camera out the window and took a few snaps (see image). Do you know what causes lightning? Have you ever heard of ball lightning? Do you know the safest place to be when it strikes? Some facts about lightning:

• A lightning charge contains 30 million volts at 100,000 amperes.
• The total energy in a large thunderstorm is more than that in an atomic bomb.
  

Use the links below to read more about this natural phenomenon.

http://www.livescience.com/forcesofnature/lightning_science.html
(how lightning forms)

http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s520317.htm
(how ball lightning forms)

http://www.lightningsafety.com/nlsi_pls/lst.html
(how to avoid getting hit by lightning)