• Question: can you save electricity from lightning ??????

    Asked by haron338 to Jaz, Roma on 17 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by syruppancakes.
    • Photo: Jaz Rabadia

      Jaz Rabadia answered on 17 Jun 2014:

      Hi Haron

      A lightning bolt is a great source of electricity it has over five billion Joules of energy, which could provide one household with all their energy needs for a month -BUT the difficult thing is we dont know when or where lightning is going to strike and it would be very dangerous to be near it when it strikes

      I think one day we will find a solution:)
      Jaz

    • Photo: Roma Agrawal

      Roma Agrawal answered on 19 Jun 2014:

      Hi Haron,

      That’s a great question. Harnessing electricity directly from the environment is the holy grail of sustainable energy solution. We have seen already with solar energy that trying to get the most out of the sun is extremely difficult, and that is an energy source that doesn’t require us to be in the right place at the right time for it. As Jaz pointed out, lightening would be a great source of energy. Recently there was a thunder storm in the UK that provided enough energy to make everyone in the country a cup of tea! If we could accurately predict where it was going to strike and collect it safely, we would have one more source of renewable energy to add to wind, solar and all the other forms that we currently have.

      Roma

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