In an amazing and unprecedented phenomenon, scientists recorded the longest lightning flash that was ever monitored.
The “giant lightning” extended for more than 515 miles (830 km), cutting the US sky from eastern Texas to the outskirts of Kansas.
The exceptional lightning took place in October 2017 during a huge thunderstorm, but the record was recently announced after analyzing satellite data. This lightning exceeded the previous record of 477 miles, to score almost twice the length of “Grand Canyon”, or the distance between Paris and Venice.
According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), this huge lightning is a flagrant example of the power of supernatural nature, and stresses the need to increase awareness of the dangers associated with thunderstorms, especially in the fields of aviation and public safety.
The new data was collected thanks to the fixed satellites that entered the service since 2017, which enabled scientists to track and monitor lightning flashes at the continent level, which is a major technical development compared to traditional terrestrial systems.
