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Scientists investigate unique formation from lightning strike
DENTON (UNT), Texas -- When University of North Texas teaching fellow George Maxey received a call from his geoscientist wife Susan about a powerful lightning bolt hitting Denton, it wasn't just another day at the dig.
When the bolt hit the Earth at 100,000 amps, it traveled horizontally across the ground leaving a burn path 59 feet long and 3 feet wide. The charge crashed into a concrete curb, shattering it. As a result of the impact, a glassy tube —solidified lightning bolt — was formed under the soil's surface. Eleven feet of the tube has been recovered. It's anticipated that the recovered piece, along with the portion yet to be excavated, is 30 feet long.
Susan and George are examining this significant formation, coveted by rock hunters, scientists and curiosity seekers alike.
According to the National Weather Service, lightning hits the United States about 20 million times a year, but it's hard to track where each bolt strikes.
"Unlike many other lightning strikes, we know when and where this one occurred," said George Maxey. "The bolt hit the earth at a temperature of 54,000 degrees Fahrenheit. That's five times hotter than the surface of the sun."
The solidified lightning bolt Maxey refers to is called a fulgurite. These formations are created when a lightning strike melts sand and other soil minerals into glassy formations.
UNT researchers, in conjunction with geologists from Brookhaven College in Dallas, are analyzing the composition of the fulgurite.
"What makes this fulgurite unique is the soil composition in which it was formed," said George Maxey. "Normally, fulgurites are found in soils that are pure silica sands, but this one formed in soil that is a mixture of silt, sand and clay."
Long-term testing on the formation will determine the time for materials to break down.
UNT News Service Phone Number: (940) 565-2108
Contact: Cathy Cashio (940) 565-4644
Email: news_service@unt.edu
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