Rare straight line lightning bolt

I found this article the other day on a rare straight line positive cloud to ground lightning strike that was captured on video in Zimbabwe.

I grew up in Colorado and was no stranger to lightning. The supercell thunderstorms mixing with the dry air close to the ground was a breeding ground for some spectacular lightning storms. Sometimes it didn't even rain all that hard.
Shoot, sometimes it didn't even LOOK like it was going to rain and a stray bolt would have us running for the house.
We all were all scared to death of lightning.
Scared because our best friend "Chads" brother was fielding a punt during a pee-wee football game and was struck down dead just as he was about to catch the ball.

This bolt captured in Zimbabwe of all places is really quite spectacular.
First, just the visual aspect is stunning.
Second, the thunder is rather abrupt and very loud. It seems like something Zeus would throw down from Olympus or from a Star Destroyer.

If this wasn't taken in a Zimbabwe forest, I would suspect that a rocket with a thin metal line was used to spark it off.
But it was a cloud to ground strike. That is clear from the stills in the article.
I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.
The video is in the article

I am going to try and embed the video and link the video. Unfortunately, my laptop is in the shop and I'm doing this on my iPhone.
Even worse I've never even tried doing this before.
A thousand pardons if this is screwed up.

Article: earthsky.org...

a reply to: Elton

Thank you Elton

ETA: If you click on the link to the article in the OP there is a 30 second video with sound. The thunder clap makes the video.

a reply to: Spader

No problem, it's pretty cool.
Thanks for sharing.

The guy on the other end of that one must have done something really bad...

a reply to: coldkidc

Or he's now the Flash

The was truly a great find and thanks for sharing. First time I've ever seen lightening go like that but I think it's fairly close to the ground and that may explain it. You don't suppose Putin was on the wrong end do you?

a reply to: Spader

Pretty cool! I wonder why the guy was filming in the first place.

He might have been filming the storm and got lucky and captured the straight line lightening. It does cause me to reflect on the saying "May God strike me dead....."

OK yall. I accidentally stumbled across this old thread of mine from way back. (Well not that way back) and watched the video that Slapmonkey so graciously embedded for me and found something strange.

I wanted to watch the video again and to my surprise. No lightning bolt.
But, and a very big but, there was the huge thunder clap.
You can even see the camera shake when the clap reached the videographer.

WHISKEY
TANGO
FOXTROT

Are my eyes playing tricks on me?
I clearly remember seeing the lightning bolt towards the end of the video.
Any ideas?

a reply to: Elton

Wooowww.... first thought.. War of the Worlds... Maybe it will pay off to do some digging at the spot this thunderbolt met the ground..

Not all that "straight". Possible that any zigzagging is towards and away from the camera and would not be noticeable.

a reply to: Spader
Ok, jeez I feel like an idiot.

I saw the Lightning bolt this time. I must have been in my usual "dead zone" when I reviewed it the first go around.
It's a place my mind goes sometimes where I can bore my eyes through the Earth and see the sun that is lighting up the other side of the world.

Teachers used to call this daydreaming.
You know what I'm talking about.
It's kind of like when you are staring at the floor during class and you can't look away.
You are at peace and feel completely relaxed.
You know you have to stop and look up.
And then, suddenly you are back in class again.

I have been trying self hypnosis to relax before bedtime.
I suppose I will have to look up my fourth grade teacher and sit in one her classes because that's the only class I could achieve that state of mind.

If she is still alive that is. It was over 35 years ago don't you know.

I am WAY off topic now.
So very sorry.

a reply to: Spader
damn i thought i was in a remote enough location to avoid any look e loos when i was testing my newcolimated beam electro cannon