Introduction
Yes — you can. This quiz tests whether you can identify common lightning types from photos: forked cloud-to-ground strikes, sheet lightning that lights up whole clouds, rare ball lightning, and more. I made it visual and a little tricky so you learn while you play.
Lightning comes in many forms depending on where the charge builds and how it moves. If you want a quick refresher before starting, check out my deep-dive: 10 Amazing Facts About Lightning and my explainer on color: Why Is Lightning Different Colors?
About the Quiz
This is a 10-question multiple-choice quiz designed to sharpen your lightning photo ID skills. Questions start easy (confidence builders) and get harder — expect close-ups, atmospheric effects, and oddball phenomena like sprites and bead lightning.
Instructions
- Look at the photo description and pick the lightning type that matches.
- Explanations appear after each question so you learn as you go.
- Score 70% or higher to pass. Share your result if you enjoyed the quiz!
Ready? Keep your eyes on shapes, brightness, and where the light comes from — those are the biggest clues.
Match the Lightning Type to the Photo
Can you identify lightning types from photos? Test your eye on 10 images—from forked strikes to sprites and ball lightning.
Photo A: A dramatic branching bolt striking a tree with clear channels reaching the ground. Which type is this?
Forked cloud-to-ground lightning shows distinct branches that connect cloud charge to the ground. Those bright channels are return strokes traveling upward from the ground.
Photo B: A diffuse glow illuminating an entire bank of clouds with no sharp bolt visible. What is it?
Sheet lightning lights up whole cloud layers when the discharge occurs within or behind clouds. From a distance it looks like a glowing sheet rather than a single bolt.
Photo C: Several parallel, evenly spaced streaks forming a ribbon-like appearance. This is called:
Ribbon lightning appears when successive return strokes are slightly offset (often because the camera captured multiple strokes). The result is parallel streaks that look like a ribbon.
Photo D: Bright light inside a cloud, with the cloud glowing from within but no strike to the ground. Identify it.
Intra-cloud lightning happens inside the cloud and often lights the cloud’s interior. It’s the most common type of lightning—most flashes never touch the ground.
Photo E: Far-off flashes with no audible thunder and a faint horizon glow. What are these distant flashes called?
Heat lightning is ordinary lightning from distant storms. You see the flash but the thunder dissipates before it reaches you. The name comes from summer nights, not actual heat-produced lightning.
Photo F: A brief, reddish flash above a thunderstorm, high in the atmosphere. This phenomenon is a:
Sprites are transient luminous events high above storms, usually red and shaped like jellyfish or carrots. They occur well above the main thundercloud and are invisible to the naked eye in daylight.
Photo G: A lightning channel that appears dotted, like a string of glowing beads after the strike. Name it.
Bead lightning looks like a string of beads along the channel and is seen during the final stages of a discharge when the channel cools and pinches off into luminous knots.
Photo H: A small, glowing sphere floating near the ground in the aftermath of a strike. This rare sight is likely:
Ball lightning is a controversial and rare phenomenon described as floating luminous spheres. Reports are anecdotal, and it’s still poorly understood by science.
Photo I: A dim, branching pre-discharge path moving toward the ground in steps. What is this stage called?
The stepped leader is the faint, zig-zag channel that advances in steps from the cloud toward the ground before a bright return stroke completes the circuit.
Photo J: A long horizontal bright bolt jumping between two cloud tops. This best describes:
Cloud-to-cloud lightning travels between separate clouds and often appears as a long horizontal bolt. It transfers charge across cloud regions rather than to the ground.