为什么闪电对动物的杀伤力比对人类大得多呢

为什么闪电对动物的杀伤力比对人类大得多呢

You may have already seen the jarring video that's making the rounds on social media: A man walking his dogs near Houston, Texas, takes a direct hit from a bolt of lightning. He topples to the ground, unconscious. Fortunately, the man — Alex Coreas — survived his brush with a bolt out of the blue.

你可能已经看过在社交媒体上流传的一段令人震惊的视频:一名男子在德克萨斯州休斯顿附近遛狗时，被一道闪电直接击中。他倒在地上，不省人事。幸运的是，这名男子——亚历克斯·科利亚斯——在与死神的擦肩而过中幸存了下来。

The thing is, they had good reason to get out of Dodge. As dangerous as lightning is to humans, it packs an even deadlier wallop for animals.

问题是，他们有很好的理由来逃避。闪电对人类的危险不亚于闪电对动物的致命打击。

How lightning strikes

闪电是如何进行袭击的

"Lightning does not strike a point, it strikes an area," John Jensenius, a lightning safety specialist with the National Weather Service, tells The New York Times. "The physical flash you see strikes a point, but that lightning is radiating out as ground current and it's very deadly."

“闪电不会击中一个点，而是击中一个区域，”美国国家气象局的闪电安全专家约翰·简森尤斯(John Jensenius)告诉《纽约时报》。“你看到的物理闪光击中一个点，但那道闪电正以地电流的形式辐射出去，这是非常致命的。”

It all comes down to grounding. Humans, being bipedal, have two points of contact with the Earth. That's a short, sharp circuit — electricity travels up one leg, jolts the heart, and then runs down the other leg.

一切都归结于接地。人类是两足动物，与地球有两个接触点。这是一种短而尖锐的电路——电流沿一条腿上升，震动心脏，然后沿另一条腿下降。

Because animals have so many legs, and they're much farther apart, the charge intensifies. Electricity flows through them, and outward. In fact, Jensenius notes the reindeer only had to have their feet on the ground in a roughly 260-foot area to receive that fatal jolt.

因为动物有这么多腿，而且它们之间的距离又远得多，电荷就会增强。电流通过它们，并向外流动。事实上，詹塞纽斯指出，驯鹿只需要把脚放在260英尺左右的地面上，就能承受致命的颠簸。

The charge from a lightning strike travels from the ground and through a horse's body, from back hoof to front hoof. (Photo: hlopex/Shutterstock)

What's more, when lightning strikes a human, there's a chance the charge goes up one leg and out the other, without necessarily frying any vital organs. When lightning crackles up an animal's front paw or hoof, it travels through its body, vitals and all, to reach the rear leg.

更重要的是，当闪电击中一个人时，电荷有可能从一条腿上升到另一条腿，而不一定会炸掉任何重要的器官。当闪电劈开动物的前爪或蹄子时，它会穿过动物的身体、生命体征等，到达后腿。

Saved, but not unscathed

得救了，但并非毫发无损

You might wonder then how the bolt that struck Coreas left his dogs unscathed. As the Washington Post reports, that's likely because he absorbed the bolt directly. He may have been insulated by his raincoat. And if he was sweating or covered in any sort of moisture — including the rain itself — the charge could have traveled around his body rather than through it.

你也许想知道，击中科利亚斯的那道闪电是如何让他的狗毫发无损的。据《华盛顿邮报》报道，这可能是因为他直接吸收了闪电。他可能被雨衣给隔热了。如果他在出汗或被任何形式的湿气覆盖——包括雨本身——电荷可能会在他的身体周围而不是通过它。

And while it was enough to do incredible damage to Coreas, the lightning bolt wasn't able to translate its energy into a ground current.

虽然这足以对Coreas造成难以置信的伤害，但闪电却无法将其能量转化为地面电流。

There's a good chance that by taking the one-in-a-billion direct hit from lightning — and by being soaked with rain — Coreas saved the lives of those dogs. Although, at a terrible cost.

极有可能的是，通过遭受十亿分之一的直接雷击和被雨水浸湿，Coreas拯救了这些狗的生命。尽管付出了巨大的代价。

According to a GoFundMe page set up by his family, Coreas still faces a long road to recovery.

根据科瑞斯家人建立的GoFundMe网页，科瑞斯仍然面临着漫长的康复之路。

He doesn't remember anything from the strike. But, as Coreas told ABC News, when he came to in a medical helicopter, his thoughts turned to his beloved dogs.

他什么都不记得了。但是，正如Coreas告诉ABC新闻的，当他乘坐医疗直升机醒来时，他的思绪转向了他心爱的狗。

"The first thing that came into my mind — and I asked — was 'Where are my dogs at?'"

“我首先想到的是——我问——‘我的狗在哪里?’”

They're safe and sound. But perhaps just a little more reluctant to step outside in a storm.

他们安全无恙。但也许只是更不愿意在暴风雨中出门。