While lightning holds immense energy, technical constraints and safety considerations have been hurdles for practical applications. A single bolt of lightning contains 5 billion joules of energy, enough to power a household for a month. The energy of a thunderstorm equals that of an atom bomb.
“The challenge of capturing energy from lightning is that while there may be a billion joules of energy, it’s mainly being used up in the lightning strike itself,” he says. “The bright light and the loud thunder that humans observe is most of the energy being used up – so in some respects, it’s a little too late by the time it hits the ground.
Absorbing lightning and converting it to useful energy would be an extraordinary challenge, Kirtley explains. It would require complex capture and storage facilities and distribution systems that in the end would unlikely yield enough energy to justify their expense.
It is theoretically possible to store electricity from lightning, but it's not really a practical idea. Lightning is not a very...
“And even if you had the right equipment set up, there’s no guarantee that lightning will hit it every second anyway.” When compared to other natural energy sources, lightning is definitely not as viable to harvest. Prof. Fletcher says solar and wind power are king when it comes to providing reliable, clean energy.
Yes, some research and experimental projects explore the feasibility of harnessing energy from lightning, but practical implementation remains challenging due to technical complexities, safety concerns and cost-effectiveness considerations.