Real-life ‘Hammer of Thor’ can ‘aim’ lightning bolts as they shoot from the sky

Posted on : January 17, 2023
Real-life ‘Hammer of Thor’ can ‘aim’ lightning bolts as they shoot from the sky

They say that the odds of being struck by lightning are one in a million—but all that could change thanks to a terrifying new technology.

Scientists from six research institutions have found a way to guide a lightning bolt as it fires from the sky.

A team was able to use a laser beam to 'aim' a lightning bolt at the ground from the top of a Swiss mountain.

READ NEXT: Viking fans predict end of the world – they're Thor of it

Now they want to start working on a way to 'trigger' lightning in order to protect strategic military installations.

The research team lugged a car-sized laser beam to the top of the 2500-meter-high Santis mountain peak in Switzerland, and have shared photos of how this was used to 'steer' the lightning bolt.

Aurelian Houard, a physicist at the ENSTA Paris institute, told AFP: "We wanted to give the first demonstration that the laser can have an influence on lightning—and it is simplest to guide it."

Houard explained that the method works because laser beams create plasma, which makes the air "partially conductive, and therefore a path preferred by the lightning".

  • The must-have PS5 and Xbox games of 2023: From Star Wars to Harry Potter

The laser is able to guide 'precursors' in clouds, where static electricity has built up.

The scientists behind the research believe the technique could in theory be used to not only guide but trigger lightning, making it possible to deflect it away from airports or rocket launchpads.

In the wrong hands, it's not hard to see how this could be weaponised either, with militaries harnessing the power of lightning to vanquish their targets from the skies.

Thankfully, that's still hypothetical—let's just hope nobody tells Vladimir Putin about it.

READ MORE:

  • 'Frustrating' Call of Duty bug leaves hundreds of players stuck on 'Press A to start'
  • Tech firm to fine staff nearly £1000 if they contact their colleagues on their days off
  • Apple reportedly working on controversial laptop idea that Steve Jobs called 'terrible'
  • Microsoft staff to get unlimited time off and paid a bonus – but some say it's a 'scam'
  • Man creates AI wife then 'kills' her because they 'can never truly be together'

Source: Read Full Article