Question

In the return stroke of a typical lightning bolt, a current of $\mathbf{2}\mathbf{.}\mathbf{5}\mathbf{\times }{\mathbf{10}}^{\mathbf{4}}\mathbf{}\mathbf{\text{A}}$exists for$\mathbf{20}\mathit{\mu }\mathit{s}$. How much charge is transferred in this event?

Short answer

Answer:

1. The charge transferred in this event is 0.50 C.

Step-by-step solution

The given data

1. Current of the lightning bolt,$I=2.5\times {10}^4\text{A}$
2. Time of the current flow,$t=20\mu \text{s}$

Understanding the concept of current flow

The current of a conductor can be defined as the stream of charged particles within a conductor flowing for a given time. For a charge q passing through the cross-section of the conductor in time t, the current I is given as-

$\mathbf{I}\mathbf{=}\frac{\mathbf{q}}{\mathbf{t}}········································\left(1\right)$

Calculation of the charge transferred in the event

The charge transferred by the lightning bolt can be calculated using the given data in equation (1) as follows:

$$\begin{gathered} q=I\times t \\ =\left(2.5\times {10}^4\text{A}\right)\left(20\times {10}^{-6}\text{s}\right) \\ =50\times {10}^{-2}\text{As} \\ =0.50\text{C} \end{gathered}$$

Hence, the value of the charge transferred in the event is 0.50 C .