Can a Dragon Direct Lightning If It Can't Create an Opposite Charge?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the hypothetical scenario of a dragon that can generate electrical charge and whether it can direct lightning-like discharges without creating an opposite charge at its target. Participants explore the implications of this concept in a post-apocalyptic sci-fantasy context, including the effects of insulation and Faraday cages on potential targets.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested
  • Experimental/applied

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests that for a dragon to direct lightning, it would need to generate an opposite charge at its target, implying a requirement for simultaneous charging of both itself and the target.
  • Another participant proposes that a dragon could accumulate static charge while flying, referencing a scene from a film to illustrate the concept.
  • There is a suggestion that incorporating gamma sources into the dragon's biology could allow it to ionize air and facilitate a discharge, making the scenario more plausible.
  • One participant discusses the dynamics of lightning, noting that it tends to strike taller conductive objects and that individuals on insulators or within Faraday cages would have some protection.
  • A later reply mentions that in a weakly collisional regime, such as a near vacuum, it is possible to direct a beam of electrons, contrasting with the behavior of lightning in more collisional environments.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various viewpoints on the mechanics of electrical discharge and protection methods, with no consensus reached on the feasibility of the dragon's abilities or the effectiveness of different protective measures.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes speculative elements about the dragon's biology and the physics of electrical discharge, with assumptions about the environment and the nature of the charges involved remaining unresolved.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in speculative fiction, electrical physics, and the intersection of science and fantasy may find this discussion engaging.

RJ Ashby
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Okay- first off, I know enough science to sound like an idiot, so please be gentle :-)

Now, IF you had a dragon that generated an electrical charge, it wouldn't be able to direct it, lightning-style, without being able to generate an opposite charge at it's target- right? So in essence, to shot a bolt of lightning, the dragon would have to create a charge in the ground or on it's target, and charge itself at the same time- right?

If the above is right, then would a target, particularly a person, sitting on a rubber or EPDM sheet, be immune to this discharge?

Or alternatively, would the target be best to hide in a Faraday Cage?

This is all for a post-apocalypse sci-fantasy sort of thing, so I don't mind rewriting some rules of physics, but not outrageously so.

Thank you so much in advance!
 
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RJ Ashby said:
a dragon that generated an electrical charge
It flies, it picks up plenty of static charge ---- remember the scene in Red October?
RJ Ashby said:
post-apocalypse
Plenty of gamma sources around, build those into the beast's diet/metabolism in some sort of lead shielded tonsils. Open mouth leak a little gamma radiation along path to target, ionizing enough air to start the static discharge, and blast. Could be made plausible.
RJ Ashby said:
best to hide in a Faraday Cage
There's a thread in Classical Physics about lightning and automobiles discussing just this point.
 
Excellent- very handy info to get started with! Thanks
 
Check this out for some lightning dynamics.
Assuming the dragon is flying, the lightning will preferentially hit taller conductive objects.
Both people on insulators and people in cages would be protected to some extent. The former would not likely get targeted, and the latter would channel the energy around the person. The dragon wouldn't really be able to aim.

This is the behavior in a strongly collisional regime. In a weakly collisional regime, such as a near vacuum, you can get a beam of electrons, as in a cathode ray, and you can direct the beam in any direction you want.
 
Very useful- thank you!
 

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