Can Lightning Strike the Same Place Twice?

Lightning can definitely strike the same place twice. It is also true that lightning may strike the same place many times in a single storm.

Lightning has been the basis for many superstitions. Certain people believe that lightning will never strike a barn in which swallows have nested. Others believe that fire caused by lightning can’t be put out by water but must have milk poured on it to do the job.

Long before Ben Franklin invented the lightning rod, people understood quite a bit about lightning and its electricity. In ancient Persia, for example, it was the practice to bury swords in the earth with their blades rising above the surface.

These “sword fences” were placed in a circle around a home to protect it. These early people knew that lightning was attracted to iron.

It is interesting to know that not all lightning is followed by thunder. Some lightning makes no noise at all.