Re: Anyone ever successful with Ball Lightning generation here. . . .

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Charles Brush by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <cfbrush-at-interport-dot-net>

<snip>
>Ball lightning
>As a phenomenon, lightning blasts its attention upon us, but there is more
>to lightning than just the intense flash and the ear-resonating noise that
>is all too familiar. There is also ball lightning, known for a century, seen
>by very few, and only recently produced in the laboratory by Robert Golka,
>Jr.

<snip>
>Golka uses a 150-kW transformer capable of providing 10,000 A at 15-V 60
>cycles; thick 1-in. stranded wire leading into a plastic tank with water;
>and a 1/4-in. thick 4 ¥ 6-in. aluminum plate. The wire and plate are short
>circuited about 1/4 in. below the surface of the water and this produces 1/4
>in. dia. fireballs. They sizzle and hiss and skim around on the surface,
>occasionally taking to the air and leaving spiraling smoke trails that
>suggest the balls are spinning.
>Golka has seen these fireballs dance onto the floor and he reports them hot
>to the touch. Their color is white with an aluminum electrode and yellow
>with iron.
>There is no theory for ball lightning, although in Golka's case his
>fireballs consume the aluminum and may obtain their energy from the burning
>of the metal.


Hmmm...if this is considered ball lightning, then I generated it 
myself when I was about eight years old and stuck a piece of wire in 
an AC outlet!  Seriously, you short out anything with a decent amount 
of current and you'll get lots of little "fireballs" (i.e. globs of 
molten metal) skittering around.   Who knows, maybe ball lighting is 
the same type of thing on a larger scale.  At any rate I have seen 
footage of Golka's experiment, and  I think that article is way off 
base giving him credit for the first lab-created ball lightning.

Zap!

Charles Brush
www.VoltNet-dot-com