50
votes
Accepted
Did a lightning strike make a river roll and boil?
This is not a lightning strike. It's an underwater blasting explosion
Snopes covered this a few days ago. Here's the article. The video was originally posted to YouTube in 2012 to host it for this ...
- 2,141
38
votes
Do metal objects attract lightning?
From Lightning Science: Five Ways Lightning Strikes People:
Metal does not attract lightning, but it provides a path for the lightning to follow. Most indoor lightning casualties and some outdoor ...
- 1,701
8
votes
Is Nikola Tesla the only scientist to successfully create ball lightning?
He is not the only one to reproduce ball lightning.
Mysterious 'Ball Lightning' Recreated In The Lab [GIFS]
From a NASA site (PDF):
At last the discovery of how to produce ball lightning on a command ...
- 81
7
votes
Do mobile phones attract lightning strikes if they are not switched off?
No, mobile phones do not attract lightning strikes.
NPR specifically addressed this BMJ article in Debunking the Cell Phone-Lightning Connection on August 2, 2006:
You may have heard something a ...
- 862
4
votes
In a lightning storm, is it safer to stand near a beech tree than near an oak tree?
A quick Google Scholar search served me up as the top hit this fine paper from 1912. It concludes that all trees are at risk of being struck... yet it also reports European statistics on "...
- 407
1
vote
Is Nikola Tesla the only scientist to successfully create ball lightning?
He is not the only but beyond doubt was the first one. According to Ball lightnings in Tesla's lab:
The adjustments should be made with particular care when the transmitter is one of great power, not ...
- 11
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible