Lightning in all its glory - part 2 (151 photos)

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Lightning is a fascinating and fascinating natural phenomenon. At the same time, it is one of the most dangerous and unpredictable natural phenomena. But what do we really know about lightning? All over the world, scientists are collecting facts about lightning, trying to reproduce them in their laboratories, measuring their power and temperature, but are still unable to determine the nature of lightning and predict its behavior.

Interesting Facts:
-At this moment, about 1800 thunderstorms are raging in the world.
-Every year, the Earth experiences an average of 25 million lightning strikes or more than a hundred thousand thunderstorms. That's more than 100 lightning strikes per second.
-The average lightning strike lasts a quarter of a second.
-You can hear thunder 20 kilometers away from lightning.
-Lightning discharge travels at a speed of about 190,000 km/s.
-The average length of a lightning discharge is 3-4 kilometers.
-Some lightning travels a twisted path in the air, which may not exceed the thickness of your finger in diameter, and the length of the lightning path will be 10-15 kilometers.
-The temperature of a typical lightning bolt can exceed 30,000 degrees Celsius - that's about 5 times the surface temperature of the sun.
-The energy contained in one lightning bolt can power a 100-watt light bulb for 90 days.
-“Lightning never strikes in the same place twice.” Unfortunately, this is a myth. Lightning often strikes the same place several times.
-The ancient Greeks believed that when lightning struck the sea, a new pearl appeared.
-Trees can sometimes take lightning strikes and not catch fire. This is because electricity passes through the wet surface directly into the ground.
-When struck by lightning, sand turns into glass. After a thunderstorm, glass streaks can be found in the sand.
-If your clothes are wet, then lightning will cause you less harm.
-During a 6-hour thunderstorm across the United States, 15,000 lightning bolts flashed in the sky. It felt like lightning was constantly burning.
-The tallest building in the world, the CN Tower, is struck by lightning approximately 78 times a year.
-Lightning flashes can also be seen on Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus.
-In the Middle Ages, it was believed that thunder and lightning were the creation of the devil, and church bells scared away evil spirits. Therefore, during a thunderstorm, the monks constantly tried to ring bells, and, accordingly, most often became victims of lightning.
-The irrational fear of lightning is called keraunophobia. Fear of thunder - brontophobia.
-There are from 100 to 1000 instances of ball lightning on Earth at the same time, but the chance that you will see at least one of them is 0.01%.
Deadly facts about lightning
-On average, about 550 people die from lightning strikes in Russia.
-About a quarter of all people who become victims of lightning die.
-Men are killed by lightning about 6 times more often than women.
-The telephone is one of the most common causes of lightning striking a person. Avoid talking on the phone during a thunderstorm, even indoors.
-After a lightning strike, branched stripes remain on the human body - signs of lightning. Disappears when pressed with a finger.