Will People Inside a Car Get Injured If the Car Is Struck by Lightning?
2 Answers
People inside a car will not get injured if the car is struck by lightning. During thunderstorms, car owners should pay attention to the following aspects: 1. Close all windows: When encountering thunderstorms, moving vehicles should close all windows to form a sealed enclosure. A closed vehicle acts as a hollow and enclosed conductor. If struck by lightning, the current will travel through the car's surface to the ground, and the occupants inside will not be affected. This is because, according to the principle of electrostatic shielding in physics, the electric field and potential inside a hollow enclosed conductor are zero. 2. Turn off electronic devices: Turn off the radio, GPS, car phone, and other onboard electronic devices, and retract their antennas. Since antennas are conductors with high charge density at their tips, they are more likely to attract lightning.
Once I was driving through a thunderstorm area when my car got struck by lightning, which scared me to the point of trembling. But miraculously, I wasn’t injured at all, though the car fell to the ground and emitted some smoke. Later, when I asked the repair shop, I learned that the car’s metal body acts like a big cage, directing the lightning current into the ground and protecting the people inside. This is called the Faraday effect, specifically designed for lightning protection. The key is to avoid opening the car door or touching metal objects to prevent current conduction. The tires may burst, and the electronic systems could get fried, but the risk to human life is extremely low. Every time it rains, I remind myself to stay in the car and not move around—safety first. Remember to check if your vehicle’s lightning protection design is intact.
