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Merle
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Lightning

05/20/2013 6:34 AM

Hi all, what is the probability of getting hit by lightning? I mean on Earth.
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JPool
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#1

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:39 AM

A lot higher then getting hit on Mars.......

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PWSlack
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#3
In reply to #1

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:40 AM

...or The Moon...

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PWSlack
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#2

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:40 AM

What is the probability of what getting hit by lightning, exactly?

The probability of Earth getting hit by lightning is 1.0. The probability of lightning hitting Earth is somewhat lower, as lightning can jump from cloud to cloud.

Consult an experienced fulminologist.

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JPool
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#4

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:42 AM

Odds = 1 : 280,000 of being struck by lightning

from : http://www.lightningsafety.com/nlsi_pls/probability.html

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Merle
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#6
In reply to #4

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:51 AM

ohh. Thx. That is scary.
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PWSlack
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#7
In reply to #6

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:54 AM

Nope. That's astrophobia.

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electricalexpert65
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#5

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:47 AM

100%
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PWSlack
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#8

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 6:56 AM

Electrical discharges can and do occur in the material ejected during volcanic eruptions. Google some images to see this.

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pnaban
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#26
In reply to #8

Re: Lightning

05/21/2013 12:00 AM

Volcanic ash is used for earth resistance enhancement. Complete guideline for assesing probability of lightning is given in IEC 60325?.

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PWSlack
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#27
In reply to #26

Re: Lightning

05/21/2013 3:25 AM

Is it? Oh, good.

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Merle
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#9

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:01 AM

PWSlack- Thx. I will. Hey, I can see USA flag in your profile, u need to be careful. JPool said the odds of getting hit by lightning is 1: 230,000 in America.
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JPool
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#12
In reply to #9

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:18 AM

Thats the UK flag......

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Merle
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#13
In reply to #12

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:21 AM

OMG. You are right. He might give me long lecture on it now.
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PWSlack
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#18
In reply to #13

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:31 AM

"Two nations divided by a common language." That's about it.

There was a time when German was being considered seriously as a pan-American language. There are some German dialect speakers in Texas and Spanish is readily understood in southern parts.

Welsh is enjoying a resurgence here, as is Scottish Gaelic in pockets to the north of the nation. Don't forget Manx, also Cornish, which nearly died out completely and is enjoying rebirth.

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67model
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#20
In reply to #9

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 8:38 AM

UK data for fatalities due to lightning in 1988 book I have was 1:10,000,000. That's per year (roughly 6 people per year in UK with 60 million population )- Jpool did not specify. Not so risky as USA.

But we do not know where Merles is - lightning frequency increases towards equator (look up Isocenauric, rate, map). I guess that is why USA is riskier, southern states have more thunderstorms - but Alaska could be safer than UK. I am sure being outdoors a lot would raise the risk.

In looking at risks, compare it with one you do not worry about much - the cancer death risk per year in same book is 25/10000, car travel 2/10000.

Risks are all higher than you think, because death and taxes get you in the end.

67model
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Fredski
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#10

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:15 AM

more so on Earth than on the moon
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Merle
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#11

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:18 AM

I want to migrate to moon now.
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PWSlack
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#17
In reply to #11

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:29 AM

It's a bit short of internet routers, as locations go. Getting a connection into CR4 there will be a bit tricky...

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bigg
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#23
In reply to #17

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 11:13 AM

Last I checked, it's a bit short of oxygen too

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SolarEagle
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#25
In reply to #23

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 10:52 PM

Surprisingly enough the moon is nearly 50% oxygen by weight....The problem is extracting it to a breathable mix....

http://www.space.com/6294-moon-dust-yield-oxygen-fuel-water.html

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NotUrOrdinaryJoe
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#14

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:22 AM

By the by, it is more probable that you will be hit by lightning verses winning the lottery. In fact, you are more likely to be hit several times before winning.

The moral of this story is, "If you buy a lottery ticket, stay indoors during lightning storms!"

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Merle
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#16
In reply to #14

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:25 AM

Hahaha. OrdinaryJoe

I like your answer.
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Fredski
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#15

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 7:24 AM

you could always go to the Atlantic side of Florida and golf late in the afternoon in the summer time and when the clouds start to form....hold up a pitching wedge or 9 iron and time it
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#19
In reply to #15

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 8:31 AM

I lived in St. Petersburg, FL, (at the entrance to Tampa Bay, on the gulf side of FL) for a while and it was called the entrance to 'lightning alley' and 'lightning capital of the US' by the weather folks on TV. This quote from Wikipedia supports those nicknames:

In the US, Central Florida sees more lightning than any other area. For example, in what is called "Lightning Alley", an area from Tampa, to Orlando, there are as many as 50 strikes per 1 square mile (2.6 km2) (about 20 per 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi) per year.[10][11]

There is an institute at the Univ. of Florida dedicated to lightning research.

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Fredski
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#21
In reply to #19

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 8:39 AM

an old friend of mine went out to the Cape to launch rockets many years ago. he lived in Cocoa Beach. you could practically set your late afternoon watch in the summer time....the lightning would start. I did all my swimming by 3 when I was there
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SimpleMind
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#22

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 8:51 AM

Outer space is probably safer when it comes to lightning strikes. S.M.

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Merle
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#24

Re: Lightning

05/20/2013 10:45 PM

Hey..thx everyone for your answers. I will be back again next time with a question.
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Users who posted comments:

67model (1); bigg (1); electricalexpert65 (1); Fredski (3); JPool (3); Merle (6); NotUrOrdinaryJoe (1); pnaban (1); PWSlack (7); SimpleMind (1); SolarEagle (1); Usbport (1)

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