the path of least resistance in this case is where the air ionized, when current starts flowing it gets hot, expands and raises, making an arc. So we could blame the weird shape to thermodynamic properties over electrical ones
And that arc flash’s temperature is several times hotter than the surface of the sun. It’s hot enough to instantly vaporize any surrounding metal, meaning that if you manage to survive being near an arc flash, there’s a chance that you’ll end up with tiny metal shards in your lungs, when they cool down after you breathe them in. Arc flashes are scary stuff.
Arc flash hazard training messed me up. They showed a video where a guy is working on some switchgear when suddenly the frame is all white and then the guy is just GONE, but the floor and everything around where he was is a different, very red, color. That “if” regarding survival is doing some heavy lifting.
Oh, absolutely. As my instructor put it, if you cause an arc flash and are killed instantly, you got off lucky. Because if you survive, your body will be severely damaged for the rest of your life.
Those trainings put the fear into you for good reason. I don’t fuck with high voltage at all, shit is way too scary for me.
IBEW local 26 here. They showed me that video too. That shook me for sure.
It was the first class experience I’ve had in the trade. That video was the last thing he showed us at the end of class.
Last thing he said was “don’t work hot” as we’re all packing up.
Grandpa worked in a power station back in the days of yore.
Left the generator they were working on as he needed a tool. While he was gone an arc flash deleted his co-worker.
Thanks, I hate it
Holy crap that was a fascinating rabbit hole, thanks folks!
So as the electric field intensifies the ions do their apartheid thing and become more conductive, ultimately leading to the arc?
This will help my nightmares, I’m sure https://electricityforum.com/iep/arc-flash/arc-flash-temperature
do their apartheid thing . . .
Yeah, this should be in the Gen Chem 101 teaching manual. Lmao.
I’ll make my own path! With blackjack!
Exactly what happened here! In the video the arch starts in a much more straight line, and rises as you describe as the air heats up.
Meanwhile in semiconductors: 5V is high voltage
this and potatoes are nightmare fuel in their own unique ways
Excuse me, what
If we didn’t eat them they’d eat us.
D:
Potatoes are so romantic
HAVE YOU SEEN THE HORRIFIC SHIT POTATOES DO WHEN THEY LOOK FOR NUTRIENTS
Noooo what the fuuuuuckkk whyyyy
'tato hungy
High frequency signal: where we are going we don’t need wires!
HF signal when piece of paper or thin drywall: I don’t feel so good boss
anyone else kinda see a wolf sorta screaming at the sky with the right hand held up with a fist
Now I do, but why does it have so much hair?
Anything’s a wire if you piss off the pixies badly enough.
::stares at image for five minutes just to make sure I’m not missing a metal-band logo reference in there somewhere::
Well, there’s no “insulator”. There are only semiconductors.
Shocking
I think the arc looks a little bit like two people.
I refuse to believe this isn’t an AT-ST.
