WMO certifies megaflash lightning record in USA

The World Meteorological Organization has verified a new world record for the longest lightning flash. The bolt was 829 km in length and occurred in the United States of America.

The megaflash occurred in October 2017, during a major thunderstorm complex. It extended from eastern Texas to near Kansas City.

It would take a car about eight to nine hours and a commercial plane at least 90 minutes to cover that distance.

There is a margin of error of ± 8 km in the new record of 829 km. It is 61 kilometers greater than the previous record, which covered a distance of 768 ± 8 km across parts of the southern United States on 29 April 2020.