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frankc420:Well, this may be a myth but I've always heard lightning starts from the ground and goes up. The lightning effect you see going down is some kind of reaction. I would think that in water, you have a higher chance of being struck than on land. Considering the fact that electricity takes the path of least resistance, that tank of his would have for sure been that path. He was just unlucky enough to be near it.
I may be a mile off on how lightning works, but it's what I was told by a teacher back in high school
Somewhat true. The flash does travel from the ground up, but the storm initiates the strike.
Lightning occurs when there is a difference in the charge between the ground and the atmosphere. When particles collide in a thunderstorm electrons (negative charged particles) are lost. These negative particles build up until they are sufficient to send out a negatively charged feeder (stepped leader) 50 yards out. These step leaderds keep branching off 50 yards at a time until a possitively charged item (the earth, or a possitively charged object on the earth) seeks out the negative feader from the storm. The possitively sharged object seds out a possitively charged streamer. the lightening that we see is the possitive charge going from the ground up the leader. This is the bright flash that we see. This all happens in miliseconds.
Now that the science lesson is over, this is a sad occurance. I also read that the lightning hit his tank.
I have been diving during some pretty bad storms. I have been on a dive boat that was hit by lightning. Lightning travels more efficiently in salt water as it is more conductive than fresh water. However, lightning injuries in salt water are rare due to the shear volume of the ocean disipated the charge rapidly. Fresh water is not as conductive, bit the volume of the body of water can be a limiting factor on how fast the charge disipates. I have been in a lake that took some hits, and it can cause a glow of charged particles around the tank valve and first stage.
If you are diving and see lighting strikes around you if at all possible do not surface. You are safer under water than at the surface.