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This is something I found on Tumblr:

Fact 61: men are 6 times more likely to be struck by lightning than women - tinyfacts tumblr

I also found this on Flickr (image license):

Did you know? Men are 6 times more likely to be struck by lightning than women

This image was posted to Reddit:

men are 6 times more likely to be struck by lightning than women

Does this claim have any scientific basis at all?

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  • 7
    maybe men are 6 times more likely to be in a position to be struck by lightning
    – ratchet freak
    Mar 16, 2012 at 17:54
  • 3
    It doesn't sound unreasonable... Men are more likely (at least historically) to be outdoors doing outdoor activities than are women.
    – M. Werner
    Mar 16, 2012 at 19:04
  • 4
    Men are taller and play more golf?
    – Brian M. Hunt
    Mar 16, 2012 at 20:55
  • 2
    I tend to think that Brian Hunt is on to something, it's all about the golf
    – Monkey Tuesday
    Mar 16, 2012 at 23:08
  • 1
    But who's more likely to be struck by women: men or women?
    – samthebrand
    Mar 21, 2012 at 16:37

1 Answer 1

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The numbers may not be right, but the tendency is.

The fact that men are more likely to be struck by lightning than women is backed up by several scientific studies. NASA backs this up but says that it is four times as many men as women. NOAA has a very detailed breakdown of lightning strikes:

In summary, males are killed 4.6 times as often as females, and are 5.3 times as likely as females to be injured.

All of these figures are for the US, of course.

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  • 1
    Incontrovertible? Where exactly?
    – Rory Alsop
    Mar 17, 2012 at 0:02
  • 4
    The question didn't ask for a reason why, but I have heard that men are more likely to be playing golf and holding the club in the air makes a great lightning rod. One would have to look at the number of strikes of golfers vs the total strikes to see if it had a significant effect on the numbers.
    – pfyon
    Mar 18, 2012 at 4:05
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    lol and what would be the reason? Men are taller on average..
    – Nils
    Mar 22, 2012 at 11:23
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    We men are more prone to be outside fixing the TV's antenna for that "game of the year" during a thunderstorm. That alone should explain the statistics :)
    – T. Sar
    Oct 13, 2014 at 19:24
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    Would be interesting to note if it actually means that men are more likely, given identical circumstances, or whether it means that men are more likely to be engaging in activities or put themselves in situations where there is a higher risk of being struck. If I try to eke out extra golf vs my wife who doesn't golf at all, it doesn't mean I'm more likely to be struck if we're doing the same activities. So.... what @TSar said. But, that would mean that "get struck more" or "get struck at a greater per population rate" does not necessarily mean "more likely" in a controlled situation.
    – PoloHoleSet
    Apr 20, 2017 at 15:04

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