Plain language summary
Many species of elementary particles are born in the terrestrial atmosphere by high-energy protons and fully-stripped nuclei accelerated at exotic galactic sources. During thunderstorms, to this more-or-less constant flux are added electrons and gamma rays from the most powerful natural electron accelerator operated in the electrifying atmosphere. Huge fluxes of electrons and gamma rays can exceed the background up to 100 times and pose yet not estimated influence on the climate. More than 2,000 thunderstorms are active throughout the world at a given moment, producing on the order of 100 flashes per second. The overall surface of the thunderous atmosphere each moment can be estimated as ≈ 200,000 km2, and according to our estimates ≈ 2*1018 gamma rays are hitting the earth’s surface each second. The long-term effects of this radiation on humans should be carefully estimated