The Incidence of Lightning Strikes to Power Lines

This paper addresses the lightning attractive radius concept and procedures for estimating the number of lightning flashes to power lines. Empirical data - drawn from extensive observations of lightning incidence upon various practical structures (including lines) - are related to a simple analytical model of the striking process, and a generalised expression for estimating strike incidence is presented. Comparison of the new expression with current practice, suggests that the latter may lead to underestimations of more than 50% in the height range 10 - 30 m, and additionally, that expected strike incidence to taller structures could be overestimated by 30% or more.