When lightening hits the sea, why doesn't everything get electrocuted?

Question

I thought water and electricity were a deadly mix?

Answer 1

perhaps if you are actually sitting in it, but not if one is just on the water in a vessel. Actually it's an interesting question, i am sure some scientist out there will tell us.

Answer 2

because the water acts as a conductor (especially since it's salty) but the amount of it means that the charge dissipates very quickly so it would only be dangerous in the immediate area of the strike, and given the size of the seas and oceans in the world the chance that you're in the water, in range, when lightning strikes i'd say it's safe to go swimming.

Answer 3

Only for around 75-100 feet in a large body of water.

Answer 4

i dont know maybe because we physically are not actually touching the water

Answer 5

I am sure as the ocean's and sea's are such a large body or volume of water, it is just neutralised, or it is just earthed.

Answer 6

only the electric eels........................boom boom

Answer 7

I used to boat off the Florida Coast, it has the worst lightning in the Country together with Colorado I think, Boats are constructed with fibreglass and I 'm pretty sure electricity doesn't travel through that. But it's a very good question when we see all thos huge luxury cruise ships made of steel and aluminum,etc. Pregaps because they have lightning conductors and I'm sure the design engineers have figured a way to counter lightning, otherwise we'd hear about it from the thousands of cargo freighters out there.

Answer 8

Ground voltage is always zero.So are the fishes .

Answer 9

Electricity is deadly if there is a potential across the body so that current flows and disrupts the working of muscles (or a huge amount of current flows and boils/explodes the flesh.)

  When lighting hits salt water it rapidly is conducted in all directions, reducing its potential.  If it hits the mast of a small sail boat, it can do great damage to the people inside as it heads down to the water, but most have a small lightning rod at the top with a wire down to water.

  By the way, most stories of electrocution by throwing a radio or heater in the bath to kill someone are pure fiction - it would short out the radio before doing damage.  However, since most people pretty much fill a tub, dropping a radio or heater on them or being in a tub and taking up an electric device means the current is going through the body into the well grounded water and may kill.