An “arc” is a man-made “arc-discharge phenomena” in which burning plasma is maintained by a permanent AC or DC power source. All arcs are “contact arcs” created when connecting or disconnecting power (intentionally or unintentionally).
Every arc follows the same life-cycle of:
1. Initiation,
2. Plasma, and
3. Dissipation; and occasionally
4. Re-Initiation.
(Note that “sparks” and “arcs” are not the same … sparks, whether a small electrostatic shock or a bolt of lightning, are only initiated by field emissions and are briefly supported by a transient power supply.)
There are a vast number of different arc “animal names” due to arcs being named as they were observed across different applications and industries during the industrialization of electricity. This is similar, however, to the names of “Puma,” “Mountain Lion,” and “Cougar” being given to the same big cat species depending on where and by whom it was first encountered. Further complicating the understanding of arcs is the frequent association with “sparks,” which do not occur within the power contact cycle!
