Don't Use Your Phone During Thunderstorms: It's Not Lightning, But Something Worse

A leading Russian meteorologist has cautioned that smartphones can explode during thunderstorms, though not from direct lightning strikes. Marina Makarova of Russia's Hydrometeorological Center explained that the danger arises from a rare inductive process. Intense electrostatic fields from storm clouds can induce electrical charges in the conductive components of phones.

These induced charges can lead to rapid and significant heating of the device, potentially causing an explosion. Makarova stressed that this is an induction process, not the phone attracting lightning. While such incidents are extremely rare, they can cause injury if someone is holding the phone near their head or in a pocket.

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There are sudden explosions, during which a person holding a mobile phone near their head or in their pocket can be injured. This is not a direct lightning strike, but an induction process. So, it's not that the phone attracts lightning, but the device heats up under the influence of these currents.

This warning, while based on physical principles, often fuels the widespread myth that mobile phones attract lightning. Scientists have long worked to debunk this, stating that the real danger lies elsewhere. The focus on phones as lightning magnets distracts from essential safety measures during storms.

Meteorological services worldwide, including the U.S. National Weather Service, refute the idea that mobile phones or small metal objects attract lightning. Experts explain that lightning seeks the shortest path to the ground, striking tall objects like trees or buildings. People are struck because they are in exposed locations during a storm, not because their devices attract the lightning. The metal components in a smartphone are too small to significantly alter the electrical field around a person.

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Absolutely nothing attracts lightning. Lightning is simply looking for the shortest path to the ground, which is why it most often strikes tall objects like trees, poles, or buildings.