In this letter, we report results of time resolved spectra of lightning simulation in air by laser-induced plasma (LIP). The measured electron temperatures varied from (1.7¿0.1)¿104 K at 600 ns to (1.20¿0.1)¿104 K at 4 &mgr;s after the ignition of the plasma. Electron densities in the plasma varied from (7.0¿1.4)¿1017/cm3 to (9.0¿1.8)¿1016/cm3 for the above times. We also present, for the first time, a comparison of state variables for LIP and natural lightning. We find that immediately following the ignition both natural lightning and LIP reach temperatures in excess of 16,000 K and relax to ambient pressure with different rates. They are expected to approach 2000--4000 K temperatures range, which is important to chemical synthesis, in an asymptotically similar fashion. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1992