Where does thunder and lightning come from in Equestria?

[ggg-2 3,553]

Throughout the series so far, we've seen where various weather and weather-related phenomena come from, such as getting rain from a designated reservoir, actually crafting snowflakes by hoof, and i'm assuming with rainbows, somepony takes the liquid rainbows we've seen in episodes such as Sonic Rainboom, and actually paint them in the sky. Where do you think thunder and lightning come from? in Last Roundup, we see Derpy jumping up and down on a cloud and getting shocked, though that's more Rule of Funny than anything.

[Wingnut 6,999]

While I can't say for sure how thunder and lightning originates in Equestria, it most commonly comes from the way a pegasus handles a dark cloud.  In addition to Derpy shocking herself in the scene you mentioned, we have also seen Rainbow Dash use lightning from a small cloud to frighten Pinkie Pie in Luna Eclipsed.  A skilled unicorn can manipulate clouds with their magic too.  In an ironic twist, Trixie used a cloud to shock Dashie in Boast Busters. 

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

Electrostatics appear to have similar properties to our own. The joybuzzers Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash use in Griffon the Brush Off are a clear indicator that DC current and capacitance are energy properties that are the same in MLP and the real world. Lightning is the static discharge caused by moisture and dry air on a massive scale and thunder is simply the sound of the electricity forming plasma as it arcs through the air. I see no reason why magical control or natural weather behavior are mutually exclusive in this context.

[DubWolf 17,265]

It's simple; the pegasi smack the cloud; the cloud gets angry; and the cloud shoots lighting !

 

Problem ?

 

Unless you want to.. ya know, learn the actual physics for lightning?

Edited August 20, 2014 by Super80 Wolf

[SCS 7,537]

I would guess that the pegasi are able to form that weather over Ponyville and similar areas in which they have control over the weather. In other areas, such as the Everfree Forest, I would guess that thunder, lightning, and other weather are formed through physical processes similar to what occurs here on earth. I don't know for sure, though.

[CheeryFox 23,821]

Males fighting over the females. 

 

Seems legit. 

[Cwanky 17,590]

I'm pretty sure lightning and thunder come from clouds and the resulting pressure and heat in the atmosphere, regardless of pegasi or magic interference.

[Falsey 44]

I imagine the weather in equestria as very similar to our own, but more chaotic. It happens on it's own, and pegasi are there to manage it so it won't get out of hand. Therefor, I think lightning/thunder most likely happen the same way as they do in our world, but the frequency is usually managed by pegasi.