![]() ![]() Scientists now know that the visible, bright bolt and roaring thunder are just a small part of a much bigger sequence of natural events that unfolds in the clouds. Lightning can move from cloud to cloud or from a cloud to the ground. The early Hindus believed the god Indra controlled lightning.īut over time, people began associating lightning less with supernatural forces and more with nature. In the myths of ancient Greece, Zeus threw lightning from atop Mount Olympus. In ancient Norse mythology, the hammer-wielding god Thor hurled lightning bolts at his enemies. Thousands of years ago, people associated lightning’s sparks with angry gods. Some researchers even suspect lightning could be used as a tool to better understand the global climate - if they only knew how to wield it. However, scientists are still struggling to understand exactly how a spark starts and how to predict where it might connect with the ground. And they have created lightning in the laboratory. They’ve tracked flashes using sensors on the ground and in space, including one on the International Space Station. Researchers have looked for common threads in the stories of lightning’s victims. More importantly, they want to know where - or who - lightning is likely to hit. For centuries, scientists have been trying to understand what triggers lightning. Overall, that means that on average, lightning strikes about one in every 700,000 people there each year.Īlthough dangerous, lightning also is one of nature’s most dazzling displays. In 2012, 28 people died from lightning in the United States. But lightning does injure about 240,000 people and kill 24,000 each year, according to a 2003 study. Most of those strikes don’t touch anyone. Jeff De La Beaujardiere, Scientific Visualization StudioĪround the world, lightning occurs about 100 times every second of every day. Central Africa is subject to the most lightning polar regions see the least. Areas with warmer colors (red and yellow) receive more lightning per square kilometer than regions in blue. This heat map highlights lightning strikes around the world. That’s energetic enough to break the molecules in the air into individual atoms. ![]() Lightning heats the air to nearly 28,000° Celsius (50,000° Fahrenheit). Within minutes, lightning would injure Sean - and kill another hiker nearby.īeing struck by lightning is very unlikely but very dangerous. Then the temperature fell, bringing hail, Michael recalls. Michael passed the camera to Mary, who took a photo of her smiling brothers. Laughing, Mary told him that his hair, too, was standing on end. Another hiker noticed Mary’s long hair standing on end. As dark clouds gathered overhead, a light rain started to fall. ![]() This granite dome resides in California’s Sequoia National Park. On August 20, 1975, he and Sean hiked to the top of Moro Rock together with their sister Mary and her friend Margie. Michael McQuilken will never forget the day lightning struck his younger brother. ![]()
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