Lightning Strike: A Lesson Learned

[2ADoc]

I have been struck twice, don't remember much about it, except it hurt for a while afterwords.  The first time I was trying to get an antenna down before the storm got to us, didn't quite make it in time.  The good thing is that my 1SG authorized a Direct exchange for my boots, and uniform.  The second time I was standing by a light pole on base and the pole got hit, too bad I was leaning against it. You wanna hear the kicker, I still ain't won the lotto.  But I haven't told Thor that he was a Jackwagon in a long time.

[curry1]

Hmm, electrical engineering.  It's quite the field.  Perhaps having lightning rods every few hundred meters or so would protect houses from such damage. Furthermore, building these simple structures in a way that absorbs as much lightning as possible could power capacitors that would release electricity into the grid.  To those who have studied Electrical Engineering, would this work?

-Penguin

Here is an article on why no one has commercialized lightning.

http://www.weatherimagery.com/blog/harnessing-lightning-power/

[F22RaptorDude]

I have been struck twice, don't remember much about it, except it hurt for a while afterwords.  The first time I was trying to get an antenna down before the storm got to us, didn't quite make it in time.  The good thing is that my 1SG authorized a Direct exchange for my boots, and uniform.  The second time I was standing by a light pole on base and the pole got hit, too bad I was leaning against it. You wanna hear the kicker, I still ain't won the lotto.  But I haven't told Thor that he was a Jackwagon in a long time.

Seriously? you've been hit before?

[2ADoc]

Yep twice.  And I don't even twitch,,,, too bad.

[Rob52240]

Lightning rods are now only common on buildings that are at an elevated risk of lightning strike (because lightning rods attract nearby lightning).  Here in Iowa you see them on farmhouses and outbuildings.   This is because out in the country the houses and buildings are the tallest objects and we only have trees on hills and in river valleys.  So basically if your house or barn is taller than corn, it's going to get struck before the corn does.

You don't see them in town because lightning will find it's way to ground regardless, if you put a lightning rod on top of your house, and nobody else on your block does any lightning hitting your block will hit your house.

In Big cities the buildings are not only very tall, but generally have a large footprint.  It gives the lightning a safer, predictable path to ground.  You also don't see row after row of buildings that are all the same height like you do in a residential neighborhood where all the structures are 2 stories tall.