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Chitchat Car while stationary, struck or nearly struck by lightning..............

lifeafter41

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
Got a call from a friend after the incident that she was struck or nearly struck by lightning.

Car was stationary on the PIE when she suddenly see this white flash in front of her and there was a big bang she heard too, sort of like an explosion.
after that, all the indicator lights in the car dashboard came on.....engine light, abs light, etc........

Best part is the car engine is still running and she was able to drive, though she told me the car was not able to go higher than 80km/hour, even though she step on the gas pedal, but was a able to travel on the expressway till she reaches home. Not sure if there is some problem with the car after the strike.

Told me she dare not off the engine at that point, as it just might not start again and it was raining cats and dog this evening.......

I believe it's a near miss rather than the lightning has strike the car, else would have been electrocuted or worse, the car could have exploded......

Does anybody ever encounter this before and question, if lightning does strike a car, will the occupant be electrocuted on the spot, or explosion would have occurred. Forgot to ask if there is any burned mark on the vehicle itself.

Meanwhile told her, she has been one lucky gal.............
 

Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
Occupants in a car are protected by the Faraday Cage Effect so they would be in no danger even in the event of a direct lighting hit.

This is taught in secondary school science and everyone with a basic secondary education should know this.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday_cage

Examples[edit]


  • Faraday cages are routinely used in analytical chemistry to reduce noise while making sensitive measurements.
  • Faraday cages, more specifically dual paired seam faraday bags, are often used in digital forensics to prevent remote wiping and alteration of criminal digital evidence.
  • The US and NATO Tempest standards, and similar standards in other countries, include Faraday cages as part of a broader effort to provideemission security for computers.
  • Automobile and airplane passenger compartments are essentially Faraday cages, protecting passengers from electric charges, such as lightning
  • A booster bag (shopping bag lined with aluminium foil) acts as a Faraday cage. It is often used by shoplifters to steal RFID-tagged items.[SUP][4][/SUP]
  • Elevators and other rooms with metallic conducting frames and walls simulate a Faraday cage effect, leading to a loss of signal and "dead zones" for users of cellular phones, radios, and other electronic devices that require external electromagnetic signals. During training firemen and other first responders are cautioned that their two-way radios will probably not work inside elevator cars and to make allowances for that. Small, physical Faraday cages are used by electronics engineers during equipment testing to simulate such an environment to make sure that the device gracefully handles these conditions.
  • Properly designed conductive clothing can also form a protective faraday cage. Some electrical linemen wear Faraday suits, which allow them to work on live, high voltage power lines without risk of electrocution. The suit prevents electric current from flowing through the body, and has no theoretical voltage limit. Linemen have successfully worked even the highest voltage (Kazakhstan's Ekibastuz–Kokshetau line 1150 kV) lines safely.[SUP][citation needed][/SUP]
    • Austin Richards, a physicist in California, created a metal faraday suit in 1997 that protects him from tesla coil discharges. In 1998, he named the character in the suit Doctor MegaVolt and has performed all over the world and at Burning Man nine different years.
  • The scan room of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine is designed as a Faraday cage. This prevents external RF (radio frequency) signals from being added to data collected from the patient, which would affect the resulting image. Radiographers are trained to identify the characteristic artifacts created on images should the Faraday cage be damaged during a thunderstorm.
  • A microwave oven utilizes a Faraday cage, which can be partly seen covering the transparent window, to contain the electromagnetic energy within the oven and to shield the exterior from radiation.
  • In the television show Mr. Robot, the character White Rose meets with the main character, Elliot, in a Faraday Cage, not allowing him to access signals from his phone.

  • Plastic bags that are impregnated with metal are used to enclose electronic toll collection devices during shipment to the customer, so that a toll charge is not registered if the delivery truck carrying the item passes through a toll booth.[SUP][citation needed][/SUP]
  • The shield of a screened cable, such as USB cables or the coaxial cable used for cable television, protects the internal conductors from external electrical noise and prevents the RF signals from leaking out.
 

lifeafter41

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
Occupants in a car are protected by the Faraday Cage Effect so they would be in no danger even in the event of a direct lighting hit.

This is taught in secondary school science and everyone with a basic secondary education should know this.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday_cage

Thanks Sam, I remember now, yes, faraday cage. Recall seeing this experiment at our Singapore science center eons ago.

Will ask her if she sees any burned mark on the car.....
 

eatshitndie

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
that's because the car is mostly metallic and acts like an emf shield to arrest and absorb the electro-magnetic field while finding the shortest point to ground to conduct the "floating" energy. some electronic components may malfunction depending on whether grounding is solid and the level of current induction and voltage surge for that brief moment when grounding is not secured (as vehicles are resting on rubber tires and there's a gap to ground). another advice is not to put your phones in the trunk if trunk has no windows or non-metallic screens and or openings. your trunk acts like a solid faraday cage and will drain your phone battery as phone tries to power up continually to get a radio signal from outside the cage. it may cause a fire if phone plus battery gets hot.
 

Brightkid

Alfrescian
Loyal
That shouldn't happen If her car is properly manufactured. In fact, staying inside a car when one is out in rain during a thunderstorm, is the safest place to be.
 

eatshitndie

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
That shouldn't happen If her car is properly manufactured. In fact, staying inside a car when one is out in rain during a thunderstorm, is the safest place to be.

but don't park your car next to big trees with shallow roots during a thunderstorm.

image.jpg
 

Papsmearer

Alfrescian (InfP) - Comp
Generous Asset
This is obviously the fault of the PAP. Their lightning strike symbol just encourages mother nature to come and shoot lightning bolt all over the place.
 
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