Ancient people did not always consider thunderstorms and lightning, as well as the accompanying clap of thunder, to be a manifestation of the wrath of the gods. For example, for the Hellenes, thunder and lightning were symbols of supreme power, while the Etruscans considered them signs: if a flash of lightning was seen from the east, it meant that everything would be fine, and if it flashed in the west or northwest, it meant the opposite.
The Etruscan idea was adopted by the Romans, who were convinced that a lightning strike from the right side was sufficient reason to postpone all plans for a day. The Japanese had an interesting interpretation of heavenly sparks. Two vajras (lightning bolts) were considered symbols of Aizen-meo, the god of compassion: one spark was on the deity’s head, the other he held in his hands, suppressing all the negative desires of humanity with it.
Lightning is a huge electrical discharge, which is always accompanied by a flash and thunderclaps (a shining discharge channel resembling a tree is clearly visible in the atmosphere). At the same time, there is almost never just one flash of lightning; it is usually followed by two or three, often reaching several dozen sparks.
These discharges almost always form in cumulonimbus clouds, sometimes in large-sized nimbostratus clouds: the upper boundary often reaches seven kilometers above the surface of the planet, while the lower part can almost touch the ground, staying no higher than five hundred meters. Lightning can form both in one cloud and between nearby electrified clouds, as well as between a cloud and the ground.
A thundercloud consists of large quantity steam condensed in the form of ice floes (at an altitude exceeding three kilometers these are almost always ice crystals, since temperatures here do not rise above zero). Before a cloud becomes a thunderstorm, ice crystals begin to actively move inside it, and they are helped to move by rising currents of warm air from the heated surface.
Air masses carry upward smaller pieces of ice, which during movement constantly collide with larger crystals. As a result, smaller crystals become positively charged, while larger ones become negatively charged.
After small ice crystals gather at the top and large ones at the bottom, the top of the cloud becomes positively charged and the bottom negatively charged. So the tension electric field in a cloud reaches extremely high levels: a million volts per meter.
When these oppositely charged areas collide with each other, ions and electrons at the points of contact form a channel through which all charged elements rush down and an electrical discharge is formed - lightning. At this time, such powerful energy is released that its strength would be enough to power a 100 W light bulb for 90 days.
The channel heats up to almost 30 thousand degrees Celsius, which is five times higher than the temperature of the Sun, producing a bright light (the flash usually lasts only three quarters of a second). After the channel is formed, the thundercloud begins to discharge: the first discharge is followed by two, three, four or more sparks.
A lightning strike resembles an explosion and causes the formation of a shock wave, which is extremely dangerous for any living creature near the canal. A shock wave of a strong electrical discharge a few meters away is quite capable of breaking trees, injuring or concussing even without direct electric shock:
- At a distance of up to 0.5 m from the channel, lightning can destroy weak structures and injure a person;
- At a distance of up to 5 meters, buildings remain intact, but can break windows and stun a person;
- At long distances the shock wave negative consequences does not carry and turns into a sound wave known as thunderclaps.
Rolling thunder
A few seconds after the lightning strike was recorded, due to a sharp increase in pressure along the channel, the atmosphere heats up to 30 thousand degrees Celsius. As a result, explosive air vibrations occur and thunder occurs. Thunder and lightning are closely interrelated with each other: the length of the discharge is often about eight kilometers, so the sound from different parts of it reaches the different times, forming thunderclaps.
Interestingly, by measuring the time that passed between thunder and lightning, you can find out how far the epicenter of the thunderstorm is from the observer.
To do this, you need to multiply the time between lightning and thunder by the speed of sound, which is from 300 to 360 m/s (for example, if the time interval is two seconds, the epicenter of the thunderstorm is a little more than 600 meters from the observer, and if three - at a distance kilometer). This will help determine whether a storm is moving away or approaching.
Amazing fireball
One of the least studied, and therefore most mysterious, natural phenomena is considered to be ball lightning - a glowing plasma ball moving through the air. It is mysterious because the principle of the formation of ball lightning is unknown to this day: despite the fact that it exists large number hypotheses explaining the reasons for the appearance of this amazing natural phenomenon, there were objections to each of them. Scientists have never been able to experimentally achieve the formation of ball lightning.
Ball lightning can exist long time and move along an unpredictable trajectory. For example, it is quite capable of hovering in the air for several seconds and then darting to the side.
Unlike a simple discharge, there is always only one plasma ball: until two or more fiery lightning bolts are detected simultaneously. The dimensions of ball lightning range from 10 to 20 cm. Ball lightning is characterized by white, orange or blue tones, although other colors, even black, are often found.
Scientists have not yet determined the temperature indicators of ball lightning: despite the fact that, according to their calculations, it should range from one hundred to a thousand degrees Celsius, people who were close to this phenomenon did not feel the heat emanating from the ball lightning.
The main difficulty in studying this phenomenon is that scientists are rarely able to record its occurrence, and eyewitness testimony often casts doubt on the fact that the phenomenon they observed was indeed ball lightning. First of all, testimonies differ regarding the conditions under which she appeared: she was mainly seen during a thunderstorm.
There are also indications that ball lightning can appear on a fine day: it can descend from the clouds, appear in the air, or appear from behind an object (a tree or a pillar).
One more characteristic feature ball lightning is its penetration into closed rooms, it has even been noticed in pilot cockpits (the fireball can penetrate through windows, go down ventilation ducts and even fly out of sockets or a TV). Situations have also been repeatedly documented when a plasma ball was fixed in one place and constantly appeared there.
Often the appearance of ball lightning does not cause trouble (it moves calmly in air currents and after some time flies away or disappears). But sad consequences were also noticed when it exploded, instantly evaporating the liquid located nearby, melting glass and metal.
Possible dangers
Since the appearance of ball lightning is always unexpected, when you see this unique phenomenon near you, the main thing is not to panic, not to move abruptly and not to run anywhere: fire lightning is very susceptible to air vibrations. It is necessary to quietly leave the trajectory of the ball and try to stay as far away from it as possible. If a person is indoors, you need to slowly walk to the window opening and open the window: there are many stories when a dangerous ball left the apartment.
You cannot throw anything into a plasma ball: it is quite capable of exploding, and this can lead not only to burns or loss of consciousness, but also to cardiac arrest. If it happens that the electric ball catches a person, you need to move him to a ventilated room, wrap him warmly, perform a heart massage, perform artificial respiration and immediately call a doctor.
What to do in a thunderstorm
When a thunderstorm begins and you see lightning approaching, you need to find shelter and hide from the weather: a lightning strike is often fatal, and if people survive, they often remain disabled.
If there are no buildings nearby, and a person is in the field at that time, he must take into account that it is better to hide from a thunderstorm in a cave. But it is advisable to avoid tall trees: lightning usually hits the largest plant, and if the trees are the same height, it hits something that conducts electricity better.
To protect a free-standing building or structure from lightning, a high mast is usually installed near it, at the top of which there is a pointed metal rod securely connected to a thick wire; at the other end there is a metal object buried deep in the ground. The operation scheme is simple: the rod from a thundercloud is always charged with a charge opposite to the cloud, which, flowing down the wire underground, neutralizes the charge of the cloud. This device is called a lightning rod and is installed on all buildings in cities and other human settlements.
Types of lightning
a) Most lightning occurs between a cloud and the earth's surface, however, there is lightning that occurs between clouds. All these lightnings are usually called linear. The length of a single linear lightning bolt can be measured in kilometers.
- b) Another type of lightning is strip lightning. In this case, the following picture appears as if several almost identical linear lightnings appeared, shifted relative to each other.
- c) It was noticed that in some cases, a lightning flash disintegrates into separate luminous areas several tens of meters long. This phenomenon is called bead lightning. According to Malan (1961), this type of lightning is explained on the basis of a prolonged discharge, after which the glow appears to be brighter in the place where the channel bends in the direction of the observer observing it with its end facing him. And Yuman (1962) believed that this phenomenon should be considered as an example of the “ping effect”, which consists in periodic change radius of the discharge column with a period of several microseconds.
- G) Ball lightning, which is the most mysterious natural phenomenon.
Physics of linear lightning
Linear lightning consists of several pulses quickly following each other. Each pulse is a breakdown of the air gap between the cloud and the ground, occurring in the form of a spark discharge. Let's look at the first impulse first. There are two stages in its development: first, a discharge channel is formed between the cloud and the ground, and then the main current pulse quickly passes through the formed channel.
The first stage is the formation of a discharge channel. It all starts with the fact that an electric field of very high intensity is formed at the bottom of the cloud - 105...106 V/m.
Free electrons receive enormous accelerations in such a field. These accelerations are directed downward, since the lower part of the cloud is negatively charged, and the surface of the earth is positively charged. On the way from the first collision to the next, the electrons acquire significant kinetic energy. Therefore, when they collide with atoms or molecules, they ionize them. As a result, new (secondary) electrons are born, which, in turn, are accelerated in the field of the cloud and then ionize new atoms and molecules in collisions. Whole avalanches of fast electrons appear, forming clouds at the very “bottom”, plasma “threads” - a streamer.
Merging with each other, the streamers give rise to a plasma channel through which the main current pulse will subsequently pass.
This plasma channel developing from the “bottom” of the cloud to the surface of the earth is filled with free electrons and ions, and therefore can conduct well electric current. He is called a leader, or more precisely a stepped leader. The fact is that the channel is not formed smoothly, but in jumps - in “steps”.
Why there are pauses in the leader’s movement, and relatively regular ones at that, is not known for sure. There are several theories of stepped leaders.
In 1938, Schonland put forward two possible explanations for the delay that causes the step-like nature of the leader. According to one of them, electrons should move down the channel of the leading streamer (pilot). However, some electrons are captured by atoms and positively charged ions, so that it takes some time for new advancing electrons to arrive before there is a potential gradient sufficient for the current to continue. According to another point of view, time is required for positively charged ions to accumulate under the head of the leader channel and, thus, create a sufficient potential gradient across it. But the physical processes occurring near the leader’s head are quite understandable. The field strength under the cloud is quite high - it is B/m; in the area of space directly in front of the leader's head it is even greater. In a strong electric field near the leader head, intense ionization of atoms and air molecules occurs. It occurs due to, firstly, the bombardment of atoms and molecules by fast electrons emitted from the leader (the so-called impact ionization), and, secondly, the absorption of photons of ultraviolet radiation emitted by the leader by atoms and molecules (photoionization). Due to intense ionization of atoms and air molecules encountered on the path of the leader, the plasma channel grows and the leader moves towards the surface of the earth.
Taking into account stops along the way, it took the leader 10...20 ms to reach the ground at a distance of 1 km between the cloud and the earth's surface. Now the cloud is connected to the ground by a plasma channel that perfectly conducts current. The channel of ionized gas seemed to short-circuit the cloud with the earth. This completes the first stage of development of the initial impulse.
The second stage proceeds quickly and powerfully. The main current flows along the path laid by the leader. The current pulse lasts approximately 0.1 ms. The current strength reaches values of the order of A. A significant amount of energy is released (up to J). The gas temperature in the channel reaches. It is at this moment that the unusually bright light that we observe during a lightning discharge is born, and thunder occurs, caused by the sudden expansion of the suddenly heated gas.
It is significant that both the glow and the heating of the plasma channel develop in the direction from the ground to the cloud, i.e. from bottom to top. To explain this phenomenon, let us conditionally divide the entire channel into several parts. As soon as the channel has formed (the head of the leader has reached the ground), first of all, the electrons that were in its lowest part jump down; therefore, the lower part of the channel first begins to glow and warm up. Then electrons from the next (higher part of the channel) rush to the ground; the glow and heating of this part begin. And so gradually - from bottom to top - more and more electrons are included in the movement towards the ground; As a result, the glow and heating of the channel propagate in the direction from bottom to top. After the main current pulse has passed, there is a pause lasting from 10 to 50 ms. During this time, the channel practically goes out, its temperature drops to approximately, and the degree of ionization of the channel decreases significantly.
If more time than usual elapses between subsequent lightning strikes, the degree of ionization may be so low, especially in the lower part of the channel, that a new pilot becomes necessary to re-ionize the air. This explains individual cases formation of steps at the lower ends of the leaders, preceding not the first, but the subsequent main lightning strikes
The element - it simply enchants in its incomprehensibility. And from time immemorial, lightning has inspired poets to create famous masterpieces. Just remember these lines from Tyutchev:
“I love thunderstorms at the beginning of May,
When spring, the first thunder,
As if frolicking and playing,
Rumbling in the blue sky."
However, physicists have their own romance - numbers, formulas, calculations. They also broke down the phenomenon of lightning into facts. And it is precisely because of this that we can distinguish the following types of lightning today.
Linear lightning (cloud-ground)
The discharge of such lightning occurs between the clouds. Moreover, it can arise both between the cloud and the ground, and inside the clouds. Its length usually does not exceed 3 meters, but phenomena of 20 meters in length have also been observed.
This type is the most common and has the shape of a broken line, from which there are several branches. Its color is often white, but there are also yellow and even blue variants.
Ground-to-cloud lightning
The reason for the formation of such lightning is the accumulation of electrostatic discharge at the top of the tallest object on earth. Thus, it becomes an “appetizing” bait for lightning, which pierces the air gap between the cloud and the charged object.
In other words, the higher the object, the more likely it is to become the target of lightning, so never hide from bad weather under tall trees.
Lightning cloud-cloud
Such phenomena arise as a result of the “exchange” of lightning (essentially electric charges) between the clouds. This is quite simple to explain, since the upper part of the cloud is charged positively, and the lower part is negatively charged. As a result, nearby clouds can sometimes shoot these charges at each other.
But here it is worth saying that quite often you can see lightning breaking through a cloud, but when it comes from one cloud to another you can see it less often.
Horizontal zippers
As you may have guessed, such lightning does not strike the ground, but spreads across the entire surface of the sky. Perhaps this is one of the most spectacular phenomena. But at the same time, it is precisely this discharge that is the strongest and poses the greatest threat to living things.
Tape zipper
This natural phenomenon consists in the occurrence of several lightning bolts that run exactly parallel to each other. The reason for their appearance lies in the action of the wind, which can expand the plasma channels in each lightning, as a result of which differentiated options appear.
Beaded zipper
This is the rarest version of lightning. And the reasons for its occurrence are not known to scientists. The thing is that it is represented by a dotted line, not a solid line. There is an assumption that some parts of it cool down on the way to the ground. And it is as a result of this that ordinary lightning becomes beaded. But you yourself can agree that the explanation looks at least strange.
Ball lightning
It is this phenomenon that is the subject of legends, in particular that they can incinerate or destroy jewelry. Of course, they are dangerous to humans, but most of the stories are just made-up horror stories.
Sprite lightning
What is noteworthy is that these lightning forms above the clouds, at an altitude of about 100 km. Alas, little is known about them now. And although they became known with the advent and development of aviation, photographs of this fascinating phenomenon have become available only now.
Volcanic
These are the last types of lightning that we will consider. They occur during volcanic eruptions. Scientists are inclined to explain this phenomenon by the fact that the resulting dust dome penetrates several layers of the atmosphere at once, and since it carries with it a colossal charge, it naturally causes disturbances.
All the described phenomena are very impressive and capable of bewitching. But at the same time, their beauty is deadly to humans. Therefore, we can only admire the incomprehensible power that nature demonstrates to us and try to disarm ourselves from the raging elements.
Lightning is a giant electrical discharge in the atmosphere, usually observed during a thunderstorm. It appears as a bright flash of light and is accompanied by thunder. The current strength in a lightning discharge reaches 10-300 thousand amperes, the voltage ranges from tens of millions to billions of volts. Discharge power - from 1 to 1000 GW. And with all this, lightning is one of the most unexplored natural phenomena.
Oddly enough, there are more than ten different types of lightning, some of which have very original appearance and extremely rare. In this collection you can see almost all of them.
Linear lightning cloud-ground
Scientists believe that lightning is formed as a result of the distribution of electrons in the cloud, usually the top of the cloud is positively charged, and the outer part is negatively charged. The result is a very powerful capacitor, which can be discharged from time to time as a result of the abrupt transformation of ordinary air into plasma (this occurs due to the increasingly strong ionization of atmospheric layers close to thunderclouds). By the way, the air temperature at the place where the charge (lightning) passes reaches 30 thousand degrees, and the speed of lightning propagation is 200 thousand kilometers per hour.
Ground-to-cloud lightning
They are formed as a result of accumulating electrostatic charge on top of the tallest object on earth, making it very attractive to lightning. Such lightning is formed as a result of the “breaking through” of the air gap between the top of a charged object and the bottom of a thundercloud.
Lightning cloud-cloud
Since the top of the cloud is positively charged and the bottom is negatively charged, nearby thunderclouds can shoot electrical charges at each other.
Horizontal zipper
Horizontal zipper. This lightning does not strike the ground, it spreads horizontally across the sky. Sometimes such lightning can spread across a clear sky, coming from a single thundercloud. Such lightning is very powerful and very dangerous.
Tape zipper
Ribbon lightning is several identical zigzag discharges from clouds to ground, parallel shifted relative to each other with small intervals or without them.
Beaded (dotted zipper)
A rare form of electrical discharge during a thunderstorm, in the form of a chain of luminous points. The lifetime of beaded lightning is 1–2 seconds. It is noteworthy that the trajectory of beaded lightning often has a wave-like character. Unlike linear lightning, the trace of beaded lightning does not branch - this is distinctive feature of this type.
Curtain zipper
Curtain lightning looks like a wide vertical strip of light, accompanied by a low, quiet hum.
Volumetric zipper
Volumetric lightning is a white or reddish flash in low, translucent clouds, with a strong crackling sound “from everywhere.” More often observed before the main phase of a thunderstorm.
Elves
Elves are huge but faintly luminous flash cones, about 400 km in diameter, that appear directly from the top of a thundercloud. The height of the elves can reach 100 km, the duration of the flashes is up to 5 ms (on average 3 ms)
Jets
Jets are blue cone tubes. The height of the jets can reach 40-70 km (the lower boundary of the ionosphere); jets live relatively longer than elves.
Sprites
Sprites are a kind of lightning striking upward from a cloud. This phenomenon was first recorded in 1989 by accident. Currently, very little is known about the physical nature of sprites.
Ball lightning
Ball lightning is a luminous plasma ball floating in the air, a uniquely rare natural phenomenon. United physical theory The occurrence and course of this phenomenon has not been presented to date.
Some people claim that ball lightning does not exist. Others post videos of ball lightning on YouTube and prove that it is all real. In general, scientists are not yet firmly convinced of the existence of ball lightning.
However, my grandfather claimed that his fellow villager died before his eyes when, under a strong driver, he decided to light a cigarette from ball lightning...
Saint Elmo's Fire
St. Elmo's Lights - a discharge in the form of luminous beams or tassels (or corona discharge), occurring at the sharp ends of tall objects (towers, masts, lonely trees, sharp tops of rocks, etc.) with high electric field strength in the atmosphere. They are formed at moments when the electric field strength in the atmosphere at the tip reaches a value of the order of 500 V/m and higher, which most often happens during a thunderstorm or as it approaches, and in winter during blizzards.
Volcanic lightning
According to one of the many assumptions of scientists, volcanic lightning occurs due to the fact that magma bubbles ejected upward or volcanic ash carry an electrical charge, and when they move, separated areas appear. In addition, it has been suggested that volcanic lightning may be caused by charge-inducing collisions in volcanic dust.
Most likely, many readers of the site “ Geoscience News» know that there are several types of lightning, but even the most educated people sometimes they are not aware of how many types of lightning there actually are. It turns out that there are more than ten types of them, and reviews of the most interesting lightning are given in this article. Naturally, here are not only bare facts, but also real photographs of real lightning. To be honest, the authors are surprised by the professionalism of the photographers who are able to capture these atmospheric phenomena so clearly.
So, the types of lightning will be considered in order, from the most common linear lightning to the rarest sprite lightning. Each type of lightning is given one or more photos that help you understand what such lightning actually is.
So let's start with linear lightning cloud-ground
How to get such lightning? Yes, it’s very simple - all that is required is a couple of hundred cubic kilometers of air, a height sufficient for lightning to form and a powerful heat engine - well, for example, the Earth. Are you ready? Now let's take the air and gradually begin to heat it. When it begins to rise, with each meter of rise the heated air cools, gradually becoming colder and colder. The water condenses into increasingly larger droplets, forming thunderclouds. Remember those dark clouds above the horizon, at the sight of which the birds fall silent and the trees stop rustling? So, these are thunderclouds that give birth to lightning and thunder.
Scientists believe that lightning is formed as a result of the distribution of electrons in the cloud, usually the top of the cloud is positively charged and the bottom is negatively charged. The result is a very powerful capacitor, which can be discharged from time to time as a result of the abrupt transformation of ordinary air into plasma (this occurs due to the increasingly strong ionization of atmospheric layers close to thunderclouds). Plasma forms peculiar channels, which, when connected to the ground, serve as an excellent conductor for electricity. Clouds are constantly discharged through these channels, and we see external manifestations of these atmospheric phenomena in the form of lightning.
By the way, the air temperature at the place where the charge (lightning) passes reaches 30 thousand degrees, and the speed of lightning propagation is 200 thousand kilometers per hour. In general, a few lightning strikes were enough to supply electricity to a small city for several months.
Lightning ground- cloud
And such lightning does happen. They are formed as a result of the accumulation of electrostatic charge at the top of the tallest object on earth, which makes it very “attractive” to lightning. Such lightning is formed as a result of the “breaking through” of the air gap between the top of a charged object and the bottom of a thundercloud.
The higher the object, the more likely it is to be struck by lightning. So what they say is true - you shouldn’t hide from the rain under tall trees.
Lightning cloud-cloud
Yes, individual clouds can also “exchange” lightning, striking each other with electric charges. It's simple - since the upper part of the cloud is positively charged and the lower part is negatively charged, nearby thunderclouds can shoot electric charges at each other.
A fairly common occurrence is lightning breaking through one cloud, and much more a rare occurrence is lightning that comes from one cloud to another.
Horizontal zipper
This lightning does not strike the ground, it spreads horizontally across the sky. Sometimes such lightning can spread across a clear sky, coming from a single thundercloud. Such lightning is very powerful and very dangerous.
Tape zipper
This lightning looks like several lightning bolts running parallel to each other. There is no mystery in their formation - if a strong wind blows, it can expand the plasma channels that we wrote about above, and as a result, differentiated lightning like this is formed.
Beaded (dotted zipper)
This is a very, very rare lightning, it exists, yes, but how it is formed is still anyone’s guess. Scientists suggest that dotted lightning is formed as a result of the rapid cooling of some parts of the lightning track, which turns ordinary lightning into dotted lightning. As we can see, this explanation clearly needs to be refined and supplemented.
Sprite lightning
So far we have talked only about what happens below the clouds, or at their level. But it turns out that some types of lightning occur above the clouds. They have been known since the advent of jet aircraft, but these lightning strikes were photographed and filmed only in 1994. Most of all they look like jellyfish, right? The height of the formation of such lightning is about 100 kilometers. It is not yet very clear what they are.
Here are photos and even a video of the unique lightning sprites. Very beautiful, isn't it?
Ball lightning
Some people claim that ball lightning does not exist. Others post videos of ball lightning on YouTube and prove that it is all real. In general, scientists are not yet firmly convinced of the existence of ball lightning, and most known proof their reality is a photo taken by a Japanese student.
Saint Elmo's Fire
This, in principle, is not lightning, but simply the phenomenon of a glow discharge at the end of various sharp objects. St. Elmo's Fire was known in ancient times, and is now described in detail and captured on film.
Volcanic lightning
These are very beautiful lightning bolts that appear during a volcanic eruption. Probably, a charged gas-dust dome penetrating several layers of the atmosphere at once causes disturbances, since it itself carries a fairly significant charge. It all looks very beautiful, but creepy. Scientists do not yet know exactly why such lightning is formed, and there are several theories, one of which is outlined above.
Here are a few interesting facts about lightning, which are not published so often:
* Typical lightning lasts about a quarter of a second and consists of 3-4 discharges.
* An average thunderstorm travels at 40 km per hour.
* There are 1,800 thunderstorms in the world right now.
* The American Empire State Building is struck by lightning on average 23 times a year.
* Airplanes are struck by lightning on average once every 5-10 thousand flight hours.
* The chance of being killed by lightning is 1 in 2,000,000. Each of us has the same chances of dying from falling out of bed.
* The probability of seeing ball lightning at least once in your life is 1 in 10,000.
* People struck by lightning were considered marked by God. And if they died, they supposedly went straight to heaven. In ancient times, victims of lightning were buried at the place of death.
What should you do when lightning approaches?
In the house
* Close all windows and doors.
* Unplug all electrical appliances. Avoid touching items, including phones, during thunderstorms.
*Keep away from bathtubs, faucets and sinks as metal pipes can conduct electricity.
* If ball lightning enters the room, try to get out quickly and close the door on the other side. If you fail, at least freeze in place.
On the street
* Try to go into a house or car. Do not touch metal parts in the car. The car should not be parked under a tree: suddenly lightning will strike it and the tree will fall right on you.
* If there is no shelter, go out into the open and bend over and press yourself to the ground. But you can’t just lie down!
* In the forest it is better to hide under low bushes. NEVER stand under a freestanding tree.
* Avoid towers, fences, tall trees, telephone and electrical wires, and bus stops.
* Stay away from bicycles, barbecues, and other metal objects.
* Do not go near lakes, rivers or other bodies of water.
* Remove anything metallic from yourself.
* Don't stand in the crowd.
* If you are in an open area and suddenly feel your hair stand on end, or hear strange noises coming from objects (that means lightning is about to strike!), bend forward with your hands on your knees (not on the ground). The legs should be together, the heels pressed against each other (if the legs are not touching, the shock will pass through the body).
* If a thunderstorm finds you in a boat and you no longer have time to swim to the shore, bend down to the bottom of the boat, put your legs together and cover your head and ears.
