Current Transmission in power lines

[siddharth5129]

If the electric field at a point drops off in intensity as the inverse ratio of the square of distance from the source, how do power lines manage to carry current through such large distances?

 

[Born2bwire]

Transmission lines are waveguides. They guide an electromagnetic wave that propagates the AC voltage signal. So instead of letting the energy radiate in all directions off in space (which gives rise to the 1/r^2 space loss), we direct its propagation along a desired path.