Protection of car from thndrstrom

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    Car Protection
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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the safety of being inside a metal car during a thunderstorm, exploring the mechanisms that provide protection, including the concept of the Faraday cage and the role of rubber tires. Participants examine the implications of electric fields and the behavior of lightning in relation to vehicles.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that a metal car acts as a Faraday cage, providing safety from lightning strikes as long as occupants do not touch exposed metal parts.
  • Others argue that the electric field generated by induced charges on the car is only present on the outside and cannot penetrate the conductor.
  • One participant mentions that the car's rubber tires do not significantly contribute to safety, as the lightning can find a path to the ground regardless of the tires' insulating properties.
  • Another participant challenges the effectiveness of rubber tires, stating that lightning can travel considerable distances through the air and will find its way to the ground, potentially bypassing the tires.
  • Concerns are raised about the impact of electric fields on car electronics during a lightning strike, with one participant noting that dashboard warnings may activate without permanent damage.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the role of rubber tires in lightning safety and the effects of electric fields, indicating that multiple competing perspectives remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

Some claims depend on assumptions about the behavior of lightning and the properties of materials involved, which are not fully explored or agreed upon in the discussion.

astro2cosmos
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why you are safe inside a metal car during a thunderstrom?
 
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Yes, just don't touch the sides or any exposed metal part.

edit: just noticed you asked why. the lightning is trying to get to the ground and takes the path that offers least resistance, metal conducts. During a thunderstorm yor cars acts a little bit like a faraday cage.
 
xxChrisxx said:
Yes, just don't touch the sides or any exposed metal part.

edit: just noticed you asked why. the lightning is trying to get to the ground and takes the path that offers least resistance, metal conducts. During a thunderstorm yor cars acts a little bit like a faraday cage.

But what about the elcetric field generated by induced charges on the car?
 
The electric field is only on the outside. It can't penetrate a conductor.
 
Hi there,

Firstly, you are safer in a car, because of our good friend Faraday. Your car acts as a Faraday cage. Therefore, eventhough you would touch metal parts, as long as you are from within, you should be safe.

Secondly, your car is mounted on 4 big isolators, commonly called tires. Since thnuder will try to "find" the easiest way, it would not take the isolators as the path to go.

Cheers
 
Fatra the fact that it had 4 rubber tires makes not a jot of difference.

Air isn't a good conducter and the lightning traveled about a mile through that to get to the ground, the equivilant of an inch of rubber won't make a bit of difference. The rubber tires thing is a bit of an old wives tale, same thing about wearing rubber boots.On a note about the electric field, it does mess up your electronics (not permanently but the dashboard warnings will light up like a chirstmas tree).And a quick search of youtube gives
Demonstration courtesy of Top Gear.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
xxChrisxx said:
Air isn't a good conducter and the lightning traveled about a mile through that to get to the ground, the equivilant of an inch of rubber won't make a bit of difference.

In fact, lightining can travel as far as twenty miles through the air. One way or another, the lightning which sxtrikes your car will find its way out the bottom of the vehicle to ground. If nothing else, it wil jump the <12" gap between the bottom of the chassis and the ground below; the tires might as well not even be there.
 

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