Some of you may already know that volcanic ash can affect local weather by blocking out sunlight, but did you know that it also causes lightning?
Lightning at the Chaiten volcano in Chile. Image obtained with thanks from fmg2001 on Flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/fmg2001/
It is thought that volcanic ash particles sometimes brush past each other, causing the generation of a (probably) high voltage (which is a potential difference in electric charge between pieces of ash in this case).
According to the IEEE and National Geographic (source links), lightning in a volcanic ash cloud actually warns of an imminent volcanic eruption.
High voltages facilitate electric arcs (also known by many people as sparks or gashes). An electric arc is just the display of electric current passing through a gas, such as air, for example.
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