# When lightning strikes the ocean what happens? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 20, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811 "2003-07-20T23:35:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aenea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@aenea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aenea)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/1 "2003-07-20T23:35:09Z")
I come to you after searching the web and finding nothing better than “we don’t really know” out there. I’ve looked amongst the archives here with no luck (if you know of a better search string, lemme know will you please?). Do any of our esteemed Dopers know what happens? I’m not talking about a particular fish getting fried if hit directly, as we pretty much figure that would happen. But does the electrical charge dissipate somehow? If so, how far do you need to be away from said strike in order not to be fried along with Mr. Fish? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2003, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/2 "2003-07-20T23:55:34Z")
Actually fish don’t get fried, and neither would you, if you were completely submerged. Seawater is very conductive, due to the dissolved salts and as large a volume of water as the oceans are, they provide a very low-resistance path to Earth. The seawater is so much more conductive than your typical organism, including you, that the current would simply be conducted around you, and noe would flow _through_ you, since every point around you would be at the same voltage, just like a linesman working on live high-voltage overhead lines. Since you’re basically _in_ the conductor you won’t get fried. On the other hand, if your head is above water, and you get struck directly, you’ll wish you’d stayed under. Look for a Staff Report on this topic sooner or later. ---
**Author:** ![Earthling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/90db22/32.png) [@Earthling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthling)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2003, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/3 "2003-07-21T05:54:45Z")
Eh? I thought the electricity gets [dissipated](http://www.earthsky.com/Kids/Vol2txt/lightning-water.html) over the water’s surface rather than traveling down into it – which mean that the chances of a fish getting killed depends on its proximity to the surface and to the center of the strike. ---
**Author:** ![Earthling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/90db22/32.png) [@Earthling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthling)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2003, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/4 "2003-07-21T06:11:20Z")
More on electricity [dissipating](http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/2003/05/31/news/5982734.htm) over the water’s surface. Interestingly enough, though, electricity isn’t your only worry (I just now found [this](http://www.newscientist.com/lastword/article.jsp?id=lw291)): > [@](#): > > However, a bolt [of lightning] has a temperature of several thousand degrees and could easily vaporise the water surrounding the impact point. This would create a subsurface shock wave that could rearrange the anatomy of a fish or deafen human divers over a far wider range–tens of metres. I also found a [picture](http://www.mycophotography.com/LS1.htm), if anyone’s curious. ---
**Author:** ![aenea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@aenea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aenea)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2003, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/5 "2003-07-21T12:20:32Z")
SO Now you see what I found when I went a-searching on the web. Nobody seems to know really what is happening. Is it that lightning dissipates further over the surface of non-salt water, and penetrates further into salt water? 😕 So how far away from the strike do I need to be when I’m out fishing in the ocean vs the lake? ---
**Author:** ![Earthling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/90db22/32.png) [@Earthling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthling)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2003, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-lightning-strikes-the-ocean-what-happens/189811/6 "2003-07-21T14:55:38Z")
Well, if you’re in a boat – that is, _above the water_ – I don’t think it matters much whether you’re in a lake or ocean, because you’ll be the highest point anywhere around, which is where lightning is most likely to hit. Be aware of the weather and get out from under the storm if at all possible. Failing that, better hope your boat has adequate lightning protection. This is not a situation where you can estimate safety based on distance – in other words, _you_ are the lightning rod, so you’ll likely get hit no matter of location in a thunderstorm. Good lightning/boating safety info [here](http://www.cdc.gov/nasd/docs/d000001-d000100/d000007/d000007.html).