If not for the CN tower being there, these strikes wouldn't have happened. These were all upward lightning flashes. They only occur from tall, pointed objects-- usually towers and skyscrapers built by humans.

Thanks. It was a crazy story.

Not really. But this was a once in a lifetime storm. A bluejays game had just ended so thousands of people were leaving the stadium in the middle of the storm.

Its a canadian tradition lol i still yet to witness but i live relatively close to toronto so maybe this year i will

Have you gone yet?

+Tōshirō Hitsugaya It's also very cool the way the lights on the building dim briefly every time a strike occurs.

Oh my god so true

+Tōshirō Hitsugaya The other think I like is how the sound clearly happens well after the strike.

Agreed

@@wardcameron The dimming is the brightness of your camera adjusting due to the very bright lightning channels. My phone does this too-- I actually wish it didn't.

And that we did. It's an amazing structure, and the design, as you say, allowed us to enjoy a once in a generation show.

Thanks so much. It was an amazing storm.

you’re welcome! now i’m waiting for a second storm such as this one to see it in person 😜

Please do. At least if I can read your study. I do a podcast on Nature and Culture at www.MountainNaturePodcast.com.

Maya R Ikr, I moved there when I was 8 and in every lightning storm it normally gets hit

Seems like it would be true,but that isn't to say it's not cool

“Strucked”

@@SheluvRexy dude I was like 12 when I wrote that lol

@@Reedmayaa I’ve known it was struck when I was 6-7

@sam-zb2ht no thank you

Awesome. It was a display of raw power

I think it's more of a result of using a fairly inexpensive camera to do the recording. It didn't really have a dedicated audio input so the sound is somewhat less than pristine.

Ward Cameron Makes sense

Upward lightning flashes from tall structures usually have a low peak current compared to typical downward flashes. The peak current is closely correlated with the volume of the thunder. The highest peak current with tower-initiated upwards is during the subsequent return strokes. These are the bright pulses that you see after the lightning channel dims. Most upward flashes don't have return strokes after the initial continuing current. They still appear bright but produce almost no noise! The first example in this video is an ICC-only upward.

It is. It was designed to channel the lightning safely. think of it as a giant lightning rod.

keep dreaming

When we first left the stadium, we could just see the sky constantly light up in the distance. It reminded me of war scenes with distant explosions every second or two.

Definitely...it worked for Dr. Frankenstein.

I'm not sure. On average it gets struck around 75 times per year, we saw about a dozen strikes in just 15 minutes. The elevator was moving up and down during the storm though.

You can see it moving down at the 50 second mark. It's also interesting how the brightness of the tower lights also dims momentarily during the strikes.

Oh ok. So they must allow people up there during a storm then. Must be cool watching the lighting from up there.

+CPWindsorsub You cant see the lightning up there since you cant see the top

Bumini Sivapalan I mean lightning off in the distance.

Zahid Amin do you have a budget?