DEADLY lightning could soon be a worry of the past thanks to a new power-hungry drone that may generate free electricity in future.
A clever hi-tech bot has been designed to trigger and guide lightning in an effort to reduce damage on the ground that costs billions in repairs every year.
Lightning rods have traditionally been the main way to prevent problems.
But they’re not suitable for some structures, such as wind turbines or football stadiums.
To overcome this, Japanese firm Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) have made a special drone.
It’s protected by a lightning-resistant cage to prevent the drone from being instantly fried to death and can harness electric field fluctuations.
Researchers have now revealed that they successfully tested the gizmo between December 2024 and January 2025.
They used a device to monitor the electric field from the ground in the mountainous Hamada City, where it sniffed out thunderclouds.
On December 13, their lightning drone was then launched 300 meters into the sky with a long conductive wire connected to a high voltage ground switch.
When switched on at the right moment, this triggered the lightning strike.
The loud strike was so powerful that it melted part of the drone’s protective cage – but the drone itself was still able to hover on without any damage.
It’s hoped that the system will eventually be used to shield cities from lightning strikes by safely flying them away from highly populated areas.
But scientists want to go a step further and figure out a way to capture all that electricity for use.
“We aim to not only trigger and control lightning, but also to harness its energy,” NTT said.
Mock up of lightning drone[/caption]
UNBELIEVABLE LIGHTNING SPEED FACTS
You may not see lightning often but it’s actually one of nature’s most recurrent phenomenons.
There are more than 3million flashes every day, which works out to around 44 strikes every second.
Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela is the most lightning-struck place in the world.
Thunderstorms can occur there as many as 160 nights per year.
And when they do come, they can be pretty lengthy too, with a staggering 28 lightning strikes per minute on average that can go on for up to 10 hours.
Source: Met Office
Image credit: Getty
