Question

A man fixes outside his house one evening a two metre high insulating slab carrying on its top a large aluminium sheet of area 1 m². Will he get an electric shock if he touches the metal sheet next morning?

Answer 1

Yes, the man will get an electric shock if he touches the metal slab next morning. The steady discharging current in the atmosphere charges up the aluminium sheet. As a result, its voltage rises gradually. The rise in the voltage depends on the capacitance of the capacitor formed by the aluminium slab and the ground.