HID Lamps:
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A welder's arc is an example
of a High Intensity Discharge.

Lightning, a welder's arc and carbon arc lamps are all examples of a High Intensity Arc Discharges.

You can create the same arc between two electrodes in a ceramic or quartz tube and use it as a light source. There are three main families of HID arc lamps:

Mercury
Metal Halide (GE name: MULTI-VAPOR®)
High Pressure Sodium (GE name: LUCALOX®)

The center of the HID arc is intensely hot—hotter than the surface of the sun!!