Scientists Direct Lightning Using Lasers

Switzerland’s physicists have found There is a way to use lasers for lightning protection, but the overall value of this method is not known. 

“It is inspiring,” Matteo Clerici (physicist, University of Glasgow) said. Clerici wasn’t involved in this project. “What will be the application of this? We can only speculate.”

The experiments were successfully completed in 2021, and the research was published Monday. Nature PhotonicsAccording to, scientists have shown “the first demonstration that laser-induced filaments,” The laser pulses are short and harsh, so they can send lightning to large areas. 

A lightning rod was the only way to stop lightning from destroying buildings for years. It was created by Benjamin Franklin in 1752. Science noted. A metal rod is attached to the top of the structure. The wire then connects to the earth. The lightning attracts to the rod, and then moves away from the structure. After lightning strikes the rod, the wire releases the electricity into ground. 

Aurélien Houard, a physicist at the École Polytechnique, told Science that researchers have wondered if lasers could be used to move lightning, too. This idea revolves around the possibility that the laser could create a straight line of ionized water on which the electric current could more easily transmit. 

In the 1990s, scientists created lasers that emit pulses lasting only femtoseconds. “quadrillionths (or millionths of a billionth) of a second,” According to MIT News.

Houard stated that the shorter pulses of energy with less energy worked better to unlock channels that were conductive. The laser can ionize air parts, which can make the laser last for a long time. “filament.” The filament heats up the air and pushes molecules away. This creates a channel that conducts electricity better, which attracts lightning.

Prior attempts in a natural environment of lightning haven’t worked, but experiments in labs have been successful. The new team of scientists found a way for it to work in real-life. Jean-Pierre Wolf (University of Geneva) and Houard have been the leaders of the group. 

“Although this research field has been very active for more than 20 years, this is the first field-result that experimentally demonstrates lightning guided by lasers,” The published study noted. 

The team put a femtosecond laser on the top of Switzerland’s Säntis mountain beside a communications structure, which gets struck by lightning over 100 times annually.

During their experiments, the group radiated their laser past the tower’s high point during thunderstorms over several months in 2021. Scientists discovered that the laser operated four times during lightning strikes on the tower. changed the lightning’s path.

Although experiments showed that lightning would follow the laser beam, these lasers cost millions of dollars. Houard said that sometimes a laser beam may be more appealing than a lightning rod because it can protect more ground.