Lightning Question

[Mike Krzywonski]

While photographing lightning a while back, it felt as if someone gently blew to top of my hair at the same time a CG strike occurred. The strike was probably a couple miles away. Can someone provide an explanation for this phenomenon?

 

[Joey Ketcham]

While photographing lightning a while back, it felt as if someone gently blew to top of my hair at the same time a CG strike occurred. The strike was probably a couple miles away. Can someone provide an explanation for this phenomenon?

Sounds like maybe a ghost was behind you..

Perhaps it was static electricity?

 

[Andrew Pritchard]

Could have been the shockwave from the bolt. Seems like that would be a pretty good distance to still feel it though. However, it sounds about right for that kind of thing. I felt a hot burst of air when that bolt I got on video hit a dozen or so yards in front of me. I suppose if you were out in the open and it was a fairly powerful bolt it's not unreasonable you felt the same.

 

[Gerrit Gulden]

It would have to be either static electricity or a shockwave. I do remember back in 1994 I was helping move a Spa from the front yard to the backyard with at least 8 other friends. It was during the summer in Southern California and the Monsoon was brewing. A thunderstorm was basically directly over us when we all noticed the air started cracking and every hair on our body stood, it was the most intense static electricity experience in my life, seconds after we noticed the air crackling and our hair rising the bolt hit. All I remember was a flash and then an intense explosive crackling thunder. I think we all ran into the house after that. That was my first close call with lightning.

Other than static electricity what else is a good precursor before lightning is going to hit very close by?

-gerrit

 

[Tim Samaras]

Mike:

When there is a lightning discharge..even a few miles away, its enough to induce an electrical charge within a certain radius. Your chase vehicle comes 'alive' (get zapped when you touch it), your chase partner's hair stands on end, that fun tingling sensation, etc...

What you felt was the 'induced' electrical discharge on your body.

Hopefully, it will serve as a reminder that: "Hey, I shouldn't be outside".

To actually see/test the actual static/induced electrification from thunderstorms, just attach a neon bulb across your coaxial antenna connection that was attached to your CB or 2 meter antenna (be sure the antenna is the ungrounded type..an easy check with an ohm meter). When there is a strong electric field nearby, the bulb will simply 'glow'. When a strike happens..even a mile or so away, the neon will blink a brilliant orange flash at that very instance. You can buy neon bulbs at Radio Shack.

In fact, one can use an 'unused' antenna for this very purpose....for the chaser who has everything.

Certainly, I'm not endorsing that this is a device that DETERMINES that its safe to step outside of your vehicle...just a fun experiment. Common sense is your best 'warning device'.

........and please understand.....this is NOT a very safe thing to be doing as you are cruising into a high lightning threat area....

Tim

 

[scott r currens]

To actually see/test the actual static/induced electrification from thunderstorms, just attach a neon bulb across your coaxial antenna connection that was attached to your CB or 2 meter antenna (be sure the antenna is the ungrounded type..an easy check with an ohm meter). When there is a strong electric field nearby, the bulb will simply 'glow'. When a strike happens..even a mile or so away, the neon will blink a brilliant orange flash at that very instance. You can buy neon bulbs at Radio Shack.

In fact, one can use an 'unused' antenna for this very purpose....for the chaser who has everything.

Certainly, I'm not endorsing that this is a device that DETERMINES that its safe to step outside of your vehicle...just a fun experiment. Common sense is your best 'warning device'.

........and please understand.....this is NOT a very safe thing to be doing as you are cruising into a high lightning threat area....

Tim

Have you actually tried this Tim? If it works then I will build one this offseason. It is a heck of a lot cheaper than an electric field mill.

I thought about doing this a few years ago in the off season but never got around to it. I tried leaning a fluorescent light against a tree during a thunderstorm and also holding one under high-voltage power lines but nothing happened. I did get it to light up when I carried it across a carpeted flood in my socks though.

 

[Martin North]

Maybe (even worse than Tim says...) there was a streamer from your head....

 

[rdale]

From 3 miles away? Seems a little distant...

 

[Willie Dines]

I would have thought so too rdale, but I remember a video clip of David O'Stillings a good number of years ago, and he was taking images of lightning during the day, and the camera crew from the TV show were behind him, and there was a nice CG, that would've been a easy 2 miles from him, but there was a small positive stremer, that had left the ground, about 10ft away from where David was standing, and of course, he was outside his car at the time

And so, yes it seems unlikely, but most certainly it's not impossible, but I'm open minded on what it may have been, as I too am intrigued by Mike's experience

Willie

 

[Martin North]

From 3 miles away? Seems a little distant...

I nearly got tagged by a CG from a storm 7 or 8 miles distant one time. Hit the ground no more than 30 metres away. So I wouldn't discount anything.

 

[Tim Samaras]

Scott:

Yep, I sure have. I learned of the trick while driving under a strong electrical storm back in the early 80s when I heard my PL-259 connector go 'snap--snap--snap...'

Yep...I'm that old. I'm turning 50 this Tuesday. I'm happy to report that everything still works at that age.


I grabbed the cable, and I can actually see a hot blue arc jump from the center pin to the outside shield. I had a neon bulb in my junk pile, so I clipped it across the RF connector, and it glowed a nice dull orange. When a nearby strike hit, it really blinked quite bright!

Pretty cool..

Again, be careful about trying to use it as some sort of 'warning' tool...although its a good indicator of high static levels.

One can have fun with this at home....just string a long wire from your window to a tree, and attach one end of it to the neon bulb, and the other end of the bulb to ground..such as a cold water pipe, or heat vent (if its grounded). With a really long wire, and during a good t'storm, you can induce enough current that the neon bulb will glow bright orange in the presence of high static levels.

Brighter the bulb glows...the stronger the field.

Have fun...but please...don't put your tongue on it!


Tim

 

[rdale]

I nearly got tagged by a CG from a storm 7 or 8 miles distant one time. Hit the ground no more than 30 metres away. So I wouldn't discount anything.

You're confusing me here... You say the lightning struck 7 miles away, yet a leader from that stroke hit the ground next to you? I really have to wonder about that observation.

 

[Robert Dewey]

You're confusing me here... You say the lightning struck 7 miles away, yet a leader from that stroke hit the ground next to you? I really have to wonder about that observation.

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/pub/ltg/crh_boltblue.php

The storm was 7-8 miles distance... in that case, it's not impossible to have a lightning strike that far from the center of a storm.

 

[Mike Krzywonski]

I would have thought so too rdale, but I remember a video clip of David O'Stillings a good number of years ago, and he was taking images of lightning during the day, and the camera crew from the TV show were behind him, and there was a nice CG, that would've been a easy 2 miles from him, but there was a small positive stremer, that had left the ground, about 10ft away from where David was standing, and of course, he was outside his car at the time

And so, yes it seems unlikely, but most certainly it's not impossible, but I'm open minded on what it may have been, as I too am intrigued by Mike's experience

Willie

This is interesting because someone who was w/ us said it was probably a streamer trying to form. There was also someone standing next to me at the time who felt the same sensation. I was a bit skeptical that it was a streamer due to the distance of the strike. Does anyone know how far away a streamer can form in relation to the actual strike?

 

[Martin North]

You're confusing me here... You say the lightning struck 7 miles away, yet a leader from that stroke hit the ground next to you? I really have to wonder about that observation.

No, you are taking what I said out of context...in fact you've conjured words up! I didn't even mention leaders......

The core of the storm was 7 or 8 miles away from me over a place called Carlisle and most of the lightning was in or around there. Yes, some strokes were closer...but I was under blue sky.

I'll never forget that one because the lady who was with me broke down into hysterics.