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February 09, 2010

Captured Lightning: Frozen Lichtenberg Figures

Blue-spiral_1535382i

Bert Hickman of Woodridge, Illinois, explains: "To create our sculptures, we rent 'beam time' on a five-million-volt particle accelerator. As the accelerator injects huge numbers of electrons inside a clear acrylic plastic specimen, a huge electrical charge (typically 1–2.5 million volts) builds inside."

Below, the result of a lightning strike on a flagpole, leaving a 25-foot-diameter Lichtenberg figure on the green of a golf course.

Golfcourse

Below, "Lichtenberg figures due to a lightning strike," from a report that appeared in the November 23, 2000 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Human_LF2

For those who wish to delve deeper — I'm talking Project Mohole — there's this page.

[via Telegraph.co.uk and Milena]

February 9, 2010 at 04:01 PM | Permalink


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Comments

omg! I just saw that and thought, I know so many tattoo heads who would love a tat like that! funny x x x

Posted by: jo | Feb 17, 2010 3:49:19 PM

I'd love to see a good tattoo artist interpretation of a body lighting strike!!!!

Posted by: Joe Peach | Feb 9, 2010 5:07:28 PM

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