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Monday, January 31, 2011

Facts About Lightning - strangefacts

  • The odds of being struck by lightning are about 600,000 to one
  • Lightning travels at speed of up to 100 fps or 72 million mph
  • The United States city with the highest rate of lightning strikes per capita is Clearwater
  • A person that is struck by lightning has a greater chance of developing motor neurone disease
  • In November 1999, two women were killed by a lightning bolt. The underwire located in their bras acted as a electrical conductors
  • Green Bay Packers backup quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck, has been struck by lightning twice in his life
  • Men are four times more likely to be struck by lightning than women
  • Contrary to popular belief, lightning travels from the ground upwards not from the sky downwards
  • A person standing under an oak tree is 16 more times liable to be hit by lightning than if he had taken refuge beneath a beech tree. The oak tree has vertical roots which provide a more direct route to ground water.