Re: Lab sparks make x-rays

["Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Original poster: "Mike" <induction@xxxxxxxxxxx>

Hi Antonio,
                   You raise a good point about the displaced air 
volume. Last year I asked Earle Williams what he thought the pressure 
would be reduced to instantly after a strike, he said no hard data 
but in opinion only maybe half of 760 Torr (Sea level). We can pull 
that low with a straw and a very thick ice cream shake that won't 
draw because it's too cold.
I had asked this question then because I heard (I forget where) that 
Tesla also thought about this and had the notion if quickly repeated 
strikes in the same channel, then the channel would conduct easier, 
if this reduced pressure was additive, etc.
Of course the thermalized air certainly helped.
I tried using google to find out if any hard numbers on this 
compression wave for thunder or the thin air in the channel for a 
short time but found nothing promising, too much clutter in the hits.
On the other hand, if this is a compression wave expanding out 360 
degrees, would it not also try to compress inwards as well as 
outwards? I would think it must push against something.
Certainly the air being very hot is expanding, thus becoming thinner 
but what is happening at the core of the channel at that moment, is 
the shock wave not also pushing against that from the other 359 
degrees in the origination point?
Maybe there is no vacuum resulting in the very channel core at all or 
maybe in an area around it.
This all happens so fast, hard to measure. Maybe pizo transducers and 
some large cap discharges to measure displaced air in both radial 
directions, that would be an interesting experiment.
Mike

----- Original Message ----- From: "Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, November 04, 2005 5:40 PM
Subject: Re: Lab sparks make x-rays


> Original poster: "Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz" <acmdq@xxxxxxxxxx>
>
> Tesla list wrote:
>
> > Original poster: "Mike" <induction@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> >               After the conference earlier this year related to 
> > Gamma ray and X-ray detection from high lightning strikes on some 
> > science birds, some people hit the field with sensitive equipment 
> > to see if these could be picked up at large Tesla coils and Marx generators.
> > One of the Tesla sites was Boston Science Museum and other sites, 
> > NO bad stuff was found.
> > The Marx generators on the other hand had plenty to show in these 
> > energy regions.
>
> Thinking here that high-intensity sparks produce a very loud sound. The
> sound means that a large amount of air is moved away from the spark
> channel. Maybe for some time interval a high enough vacuum is formed at
> the spark channel, and electrons are accelerated to high enough speeds
> there by the electric field. When they shock against the air around
> the channel X-rays may be emitted.
>
> Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz