6 ms·
I've visited this place once. My girlfriend and I drove out quite a ways - the salt flats are prettier / more reflective, like what you'd see in popular Instagr
by blkhp19 6y ago
I've visited this place once. My girlfriend and I drove out quite a ways - the salt flats are prettier / more reflective, like what you'd see in popular Instagram posts, once you drive for 5 minutes away from the road that everyone parks on.
A storm was approaching from the direction that we came. I was counting the time between the rumbles of thunder and the strikes of lightning. It was about 5-10 seconds, which was close enough for me to rush back into the car after getting a couple of nice pictures.
My girlfriend and I parked our car toward the storm and watched for about 10 minutes. About half a mile back the way we came, we saw lightning strike the middle of the flats. It must have vaporized some of the mud / salt on the ground because there was a clear line of smoke coming up from that part of the ground. I was surprised that it struck a completely flat part, rather than our metal SUV, since we were definitely the tallest things around.
I insisted that we drive back, because despite knowing that we'd be relatively safe in a car, I wasn't looking to experience an electrical fire or, at a minimum, the worst jump-scare of my life. As I drove back to the parking lot, what shocked me the most was seeing people still out taking pictures back near the parking lot from which we came. The lightning strike occurred between our car and the people out taking photos, which means they were easily in striking distance. I was honestly scared I would witness someone get struck - these are salt _flats_ - anyone out taking photos is the tallest thing in the area for several miles.
- throwaway0a5e 6y agoWhy anyone would drive a vehicle on "salt" anything let alone when there's the threat of moisture appearing from the sky is beyond me but maybe I'm just jaded because my state salts the roads.
- jeffreyrogers 6y agoIt's really dry out there most of the time. And the salt flats are flat and hard, which is why they are used for racing.
- olivermarks 6y agoLand speed racing can only occur when the lake bed is dry, and after a course is prepared piste style. A lot of the year it's soggy and unstable, which is why speed week is in August if conditions are ok. you can stand on the start line but the cars are geared for a slow push start, nothing beats the doppler effect of multi engined streamliners going past mid course, seeing earth curvature and heat mirages. Amazing experience. https://youtu.be/HzwWTYQwvA0 https://youtu.be/HzwWTYQwvA0 https://youtu.be/qJ_WqSrC-LY https://youtu.be/qJ_WqSrC-LY
- MisterTea 6y ago> I was surprised that it struck a completely flat part, rather than our metal SUV, since we were definitely the tallest things around. Given that a lightning bolt is anywhere from about 1-20km long, the ~1.5 - 2m height differential of your vehicle is background noise.
- paulcole 6y agoDoes this mean the people are pretty much safe, too? Can’t imagine many of them are over 2m.
- rob74 6y agoI wouldn't bet on it - the lightning might strike the ground directly sometimes, but I imagine that a taller object still has a much higher risk of being struck...
- ableal 6y agoA few years ago a young woman jogging on the beach near Lisbon was struck and killed by lightning. I wouldn't bet my life against those natural shortest path algorithms ...
- distant_hat 6y agoIt isn't about the height, it is that spikier conducting things concentrate charges.
- anonAndOn 6y agoFFR, if you know where the lightning struck the ground, you might get lucky and find a fulgurite there after the storm passes.[0] [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulgurite https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulgurite