So why don't all the fish die? Before a lightning strike, a charge builds up along the water's surface. When lightning strikes, most of electrical discharge occurs near the water's surface. Most fish swim below the surface and are unaffected.
In practice, fish are killed by electrocution using equipment which exposes the fish to an electric field that causes an immediate stun and which then, through extended exposure, results in permanent and fatal brain damage.
He took the average strikes across the worlds oceans, compared it the surface area of the oceans, the number of whales estimated in the ocean, the time the are at the surface etc... and to cut a long story short, he reckons, yes, statistically whales must have been killed by lightning many times in the past few ...
Some sea mammals, including the dolphins, can stand completely still in wander around with parts of their bodies above the water. Though the likelihood is extremely low, it is possible that lightning could strike the dolphin's body if it is the highest point in the ocean.
A body of water is the equivalent of putting a hairdryer in a bath, and because water conducts electricity, lightning is more likely to strike water than land. If the water you're swimming in gets struck by lightning it can severely injure you or even kill you.
When lightning strikes, most of electrical discharge occurs near the water's surface. Most fish swim below the surface and are unaffected. Although scientists don't know exactly just how deep the lightning discharge reaches in water, it's very dangerous to be swimming or boating during a thunderstorm.
Lightning doesn't strike the ocean as much as land, but when it does,it spreads out over the water, which acts as a conductor. It can hit boats that are nearby, and electrocute fish that are near the surface. If you're at the beach and hear thunder or see lightning, get out of the water.
As a consequence, cows are the farm animals most likely to have an encounter with lightning. Cow casualties from lightning strikes in the United States aren't very high, but when such strikes do occur they can be devastating for an individual farmer. That's because cows, like reindeer, often huddle together.
The collision of ice and water particles causes separation of the positive and negative electric charges in the particles. Positive charged ice particles tend to collect in the upper parts of the storm, with negative charged particles in the middle and lower parts of the storm.
Both humans and dolphins are mammals. Although sea water acts as an effective disinfectant, interaction with wild dolphins may result in disease transfer. These may present serious health threats to dolphins and humans alike. Finally, swimming with dolphins represents harassment – you do not want to get a fine.
Although every lightning strike is different, damage to the antenna, electrical system, rear windshield, and tires is common. The heat from a lightning strike is sufficient to partially melt the antenna of a vehicle and can cause what seems like a small explosion of sparks as tiny fragments of metal melt and burn.
The electric current has to pass through your body to do you any harm, and the conducting sea water will carry a good deal of the current around your body. You are at much greater risk if you are protruding above the water in a boat or on a windsurf board, as I once was during a lightning storm in Australia.
Thunderstorms help transfer the negative charges back to Earth (lightning is generally negatively charged). Without thunderstorms and lightning, the earth-atmosphere electrical balance would disappear in 5 minutes. Lightning also makes ozone-producing chemicals.
Fish have gills that allow them to “breathe” oxygen dissolved in the water. Water enters the mouth, passes over the gills, and exits the body through a special opening. This keeps an adequate amount of water in their bodies and they don't feel thirsty. Ask your own question!
The electric catfish can emit up to 300 volts to stun its unsuspecting prey. However, the fish isn't just immune to its own jolts – it seems to be unable to be shocked at all.
electric eel, (genus Electrophorus), any of three species of elongated South American knifefishes that produce powerful electric shocks to stun prey, usually other fish. All three species—the electric eel (Electrophorus electricus), Vari's electric eel (E. varii), and Volta's electric eel (E.
Because seawater is a good conductor, the remaining current penetrates hemispherically downward and fully dissipates less than 10 feet below the surface. It is believed that lethal current spreads horizontally only 20 feet from the position of strike impact.
This is often called "breaking the sound barrier." The visible part of a sonic boom is actually air that becomes squashed by sound waves. The thunder that a storm makes is also a sonic boom caused by lightning forcing air to move faster than the speed of sound.
Lightning can jump through windows, so keep your distance from them during storms! The second way lightning can enter a building is through pipes or wires. If the lightning strikes utility infrastructure, it can travel through those pipes or wires and enter your home that way.
Animals that have a large separation between their front and back legs (such as cattle) are vulnerable to receive lightning strike injuries due to the dangerous potential differences that built up between those feet during lightning strike events.
Besides sudden death, signs can include singe marks, temporary loss of consciousness in mild cases, and fractures or muscle damage from severe contractions. Diagnosis may depend on circumstantial evidence, such as the location of groups of affected animals and lack of other signs of disease.
The Eiffel tower and lightning have a long history. Since its birth in 1889, the monument has "attracted" lightning during storms – there are on average 5 impacts every year.
Lightning usually strikes an aircraft on the front side of the plane's cockpit. The edge of the cockpit window is a typical point of impact. The aluminium fuselage of the aircraft conducts electricity well, and due to that, the lightning discharge does not affect the inside of the aircraft.
More than 90 percent of lightning bolts strike over the continents, but the lightning that strikes the ocean can be far more intense.