Details of research on using electricty from Lightening of the sky

In summary, harnessing lightning for electricity is possible but not practical due to the high amount of power lost as thunder, hot air, and radio waves, as well as the difficulty in capturing a significant amount of lightning energy. Methods such as using huge capacitors or Van de Graaff generators may be adapted for power storage, but it would require thousands of lightning flashes to power a single home for a few months. This information is based on research from “The Lightning Discharge” by Martin A. Uman, published in 2001 by Dover Publications.
  • #1
shivakumar06
69
0
is it possible to harness the lightning to get electricity.
 
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  • #2
Absolutely. It's also so dangerous and unpredictable that it's useless as a concept for power generation.
 
  • #3
Also throw in not dense or continuous enough for widespread, continuous use.
 
  • #4
can a huge capacitor or van dee graaff generator connected to lightning protection system store a part of the electricity from lightening.
 
  • #5
I would think that practically any method of power storage could be adapted to lightning.
 
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  • #6
“However, there are two seemingly insolvable problems in tapping the power of lightning: (1) most of the power is converted to thunder, hot air, and radio waves which cannot, at present, be recovered, leaving only a small fraction available at the (lightning) channel for immediate use or storage. And (2) it is impractical to intercept with tall towers or similar schemes any significant amount of lightning energy. For example, the total energy in a single flash, if it could be captured, would operate a single light bulb for only a few months. Since only a small fraction of the total flash is available, thousands of flashes would have to be captured during that period to power a single home.”

From “The Lightning Discharge” by Martin A. Uman, Dover Publications, 2001

Cheers,
Bobbywhy
 

1. What is the purpose of researching the use of electricity from lightning?

The purpose of this research is to explore the potential of using lightning as a renewable energy source. Lightning strikes occur frequently and contain high amounts of energy, making it a promising source of electricity.

2. How is electricity from lightning captured and stored?

Currently, there are a few methods being researched for capturing and storing electricity from lightning. These include using tall structures to attract and channel lightning, using specialized conductors to capture the energy, and using batteries or capacitors to store the electricity.

3. What are the potential benefits of using electricity from lightning?

The use of electricity from lightning has the potential to provide a renewable and sustainable source of energy. It could also help reduce reliance on non-renewable energy sources and decrease carbon emissions. Additionally, it could potentially provide electricity to remote or off-grid locations.

4. What are the challenges and limitations of using electricity from lightning?

One of the main challenges is the unpredictability of lightning strikes, making it difficult to capture and store the energy consistently. There are also safety concerns and challenges in designing and implementing effective capturing and storage methods. Additionally, the cost of implementing these technologies may be a limitation.

5. How far along is the research on using electricity from lightning?

Research on using electricity from lightning is still in the early stages, with various methods being tested and developed. While there have been some successful demonstrations of capturing and storing lightning energy, there is still a long way to go before it can be effectively and reliably utilized on a larger scale.

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