Lightning

Six times hotter than the surface of the sun, lightning is one of the world’s strangest phenomena. This film follows the progress of a lightning stroke, from its birth in the clouds, to the weird sounds called whistlers that follow it.

In Australia we follow lightning researchers flying into storm clouds, to discover what triggers a lightning stroke. At the International Lightning Center in Florida we find new research that suggests that cosmic rays from outer space trigger lightning. We meet a golfer struck by lightning, and reveal what happens when you’re hit. Why do some people survive, when others don’t?

One of the weirdest forms of lightning is ball lightning, but is it real, or a myth? We talk to people who have seen it. And we see stunning footage of sprites and other forms of lightning that go up from clouds towards space, and see them recreated in a laboratory. The film climaxes with the discovery that without lightning, we wouldn’t have satellite communication. Our modern way of life would be impossible.

[angeloavanti]

I was struck with a 'splash hit' at my front door in 2004. Lucky is understatement. It hit the tree in front of my house, then rolled at me, knocked me down and pushed me 10 feet. My daughter saw it all. She said, 'I saw your bones'. Crikey. I have two exit wounds on my right leg. Had a black toenail for 14 years. Thankfully it went down the right side of my body because I had a rubber flip flop on my left foot, I had kicked off the right foot flip flop just before the strike. Some pain in my right leg now and then. I still feel lightning striking up to a half mile away. It's like a body memory I never had.

[Zenodilodon]

Ball lightning is awesome! I saw it once when I was visiting my aunt in MI. I walked into the guest cottage porch to fetch an item and noticed a nice *moon over the cottage. I didn't think anything of it until I walked back outside and noticed the real moon. I looked up above the cottage and sure enough it was still there. I watched it drift off and dissipate against a street light's wooden pole. To this day it was one of the strangest things I've seen.

[ashutoshsuman]

"When thunder Roars, Go Indoors."

[rosiemackenzie]

I remember once on a long distance flight our plane flew through a thunder storm with lots of lightening and the plane was slightly shuddering, I thought is was very exciting, so I looked out the window and I saw the most magnificant sight, when the lightening occurred it lit up the heavens which we were in, it was one of the most awe inspiring sights I have ever seen, it made me realise howpuny us human beings are! Other people were abit scared, I thought is was amazing!

[RonSeymour]

Not mentioned is the fact that a lightning strike starts from the ground. That is why a rubber-soled shoe will help to protect you. The negative charge moves along the ground looking to connect with a positive charge. When it encounters a tall object, you or a tree, it flashes up to the cloud and immediately completes a circuit. The circuit is now complete and it discharges to earth back through the person or tree. If you think about why rubber soles protect you, it prevents the current from moving into your body from the ground. If the current started from the air it would travel through your body until it got to your feet when the damage has already been done.

[FYTfaEjYHNXjChexsxmCpNEtz]

In the mid-90s I was driving through the redwood forest in northern CA one summer night about 2 AM. Suddenly a large dark mass unfolded itself from the ditch on the edge of the road on my right side and flew across the pavement 15 m in front of me in a blur of flailing arms and legs. Almost before I had time to register the creature, it made it to the treeline on the opposite side and disappeared. It was an extremely fast moving hippy with a giant backpack.

[djvycious]

Right at the start the speed is described as 'faster than a speeding bullet'. Yes, that's like saying a top fuel dragster is faster than an exhausted snail.

[DarthDragon]

I call bs that we somehow know more about a star exploding across the galaxy than lightning. Scientists always say these types of things even if it's not true.

[airplanegeorge]

Where do you get static electricity?---where it is dry.
where do you get it is wet.
something doesn't add up.

[latvian_homestead]

I have witnessed ball lightning few years ago. It lasted good minute until disappeared from my sight.

[easymac]

It's hard to remember which documentaries I've seen and not..

[MeeZyStudioZ]

Naked Science: Lightning crashes

90's Kids: An old mother dies

[Kumquat_Lord]

I do like how you time the ads to match the commercial breaks

[denisvincelette]

I have seen a lightning bolt up close about 4 feet away. It was a long bolt of light unrolling as it came down with flames coming off the edges.

[Aurora_yt]

I am TERRIFIED by thunderstorms! 😬
Hats off to all the brave storm chasers who put their lives on the line to help us understand these wonders of nature.

[zweisteinya]

'Dry lightning' or "a bolt from out of the blue" is part of my memory of Yellowstone Park.
What kind of modern 'scientist' is unaware that solar fusion converts hydrogen ions (ie protons) into helium nuclei (ie "alpha particles"/ protons AND neutrons) as well as excess protons, creating a Solar Wind of protons and a flow of positive charge--and when it encounters Earth it is not all deflected, and protons have inertial and magnetic momentum as well as polarizing the Earth negative.
That's a lot of real science that's missing here

[ziapochka]

About 10 years ago, I saw the formation of ball lightning. It was something incredible. Unreal beautiful and just as scary. At night there was a dry thunderstorm, and then many saw fireballs. The window in my room was open, the lights were off. The fifth floor, against the background of an almost black sky, showed how multi-colored threads appear from the air in front of the window, similar to wool but glowing. They rotated around a common center gathering into a ball. It lasted a few seconds, when the ball was formed, he abruptly pulled down. After that there was such a peal of thunder that I had my ears covered. All this time I was afraid to move, because I heard that from human movements ball lightning can fly into the house and burn everything inside. What I saw then was remembered in detail and it is hardly possible to forget.

[cfwintner]

Next step: how to capture lightning's energy and use it to power the grid.

[payamyazdi]

Everytime I see my mother in law is like I am getting hit by lightning.

[davekeim]

the coolest electrical storms I have seen are in Arizonia in the summer they are awesome to see.