The serious study of lightning began in the 1700's. In Africa people presupposed that humans and places that were struck by lightning were cursed. Some people in Europe and America thought that lightning could be kept away by ringing church bells. In 1752 Benjamin Franklin showed that lightning is an electricity by flying a kite in a storm. On the kite string was a key and the lightning caused sparks to jump from the key to grounded objects.
Forked lightning is a stroke of lightning that has a many branches.
Streak lightning is a flash that appears as one single jagged line. Ribbon lightning occurs when the wind separates a stroke of lightning creating parallel strokes. Bead or chain lightning occurs when a flash breaks up into a dotted line as it fades. Heat Lightning seems to have no thunder because it is too far away to hear. Sheet lightning occurs when the sky is lit with flashes but it is too far away to see or the display is hidden by clouds.