Millennium Force gets struck by lightning!
It was TERRIBLE over hear on the Indiana border, there were 14 tornadoes in the area! people's house had trees thrown through people's houses, houses destroyed, debris every where. There was a tree that snapped at the base, thrown 50 feet and just barely missed my car. Let's just hope that MF doesn't have to go through anything like that.
Neil is mostly correct...
Lightning is a discharge which usually comes from a convenient point on a conductor. So it is unlikely to come from a circular rail, but likely to come from the edge of a track tie. It is really not necessary to equip a steel coaster with lightning rods to attract lightning provided that the critical circuits are isolated from the steel structure AND the steel structure is adequately bonded to a suitable ground. If the ride structure is grounded, it will provide a low-resistance path to ground, which will prevent damage from the lightning strike. A lightning rod actually attracts lightning...it provides a low-resistance path for the lightning bolt to follow so that it won't instead propogate through a higher-resistance path and cause Big Problems. For instance, a rain-soaked wood coaster is a pretty lousy conductor, but it can conduct lightning to ground...but at a high enough resistance that the conductor (such as it is) will heat up and catch fire. Making a lightning rod a very Good Idea.
I think I got that more or less right. Gemini, can you comment on this?
--Dave Althoff, Jr., who thinks he remembers something about Gemini's academic background that might be useful here...
Lightning is a discharge which usually comes from a convenient point on a conductor. So it is unlikely to come from a circular rail, but likely to come from the edge of a track tie. It is really not necessary to equip a steel coaster with lightning rods to attract lightning provided that the critical circuits are isolated from the steel structure AND the steel structure is adequately bonded to a suitable ground. If the ride structure is grounded, it will provide a low-resistance path to ground, which will prevent damage from the lightning strike. A lightning rod actually attracts lightning...it provides a low-resistance path for the lightning bolt to follow so that it won't instead propogate through a higher-resistance path and cause Big Problems. For instance, a rain-soaked wood coaster is a pretty lousy conductor, but it can conduct lightning to ground...but at a high enough resistance that the conductor (such as it is) will heat up and catch fire. Making a lightning rod a very Good Idea.
I think I got that more or less right. Gemini, can you comment on this?
--Dave Althoff, Jr., who thinks he remembers something about Gemini's academic background that might be useful here...
Dave, somehow I knew you would chime in with your infinite wisdom! :)
Interestingly said of how a circular rail would not act as an ideal conductor (which I assume you mean the track in this case), but moreover the tower supports could actually be the ideal conduction point (not to mention the electricity that feeds the beacon light could also attract the atmospheric discharge) It would seem that each of the support towers are in fact, equipped with lightning rods (or is the steel towers in itself handle this task?), with some type of connection to the track in order to acheive this resistance?
Digging even further in this analysis, my concern is mostly with the computer systems, as well as the motors of MF, how in turn are they protected from scenarios such as a lightning strike? We all have heard that SOB's computer systems suffered a set-back as a result of a lightning strike, it would seem that this resulted from poor planning as many controls are exposed directly to the elements. Surely CP has come up with a viable back-up plan to prevent such catastrophies.
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Neil
Feeling academically enlightend at this point *** This post was edited by Seven-of-9 on 5/10/2000. ***
Interestingly said of how a circular rail would not act as an ideal conductor (which I assume you mean the track in this case), but moreover the tower supports could actually be the ideal conduction point (not to mention the electricity that feeds the beacon light could also attract the atmospheric discharge) It would seem that each of the support towers are in fact, equipped with lightning rods (or is the steel towers in itself handle this task?), with some type of connection to the track in order to acheive this resistance?
Digging even further in this analysis, my concern is mostly with the computer systems, as well as the motors of MF, how in turn are they protected from scenarios such as a lightning strike? We all have heard that SOB's computer systems suffered a set-back as a result of a lightning strike, it would seem that this resulted from poor planning as many controls are exposed directly to the elements. Surely CP has come up with a viable back-up plan to prevent such catastrophies.
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Neil
Feeling academically enlightend at this point *** This post was edited by Seven-of-9 on 5/10/2000. ***
Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't lightning rods do the opposite of attracting lightning? If I remember correctly from my E.Mag physics class, a lightning rod provides a drain from the electricity build up over the area to ground...thus the clouds never generate enough static charge to discharge to ground (lightning), and instead it seeps rather constantly to ground. Thus, it is very unlikely that a structure fitted with a lightning rod would ever get struck by lightning. Of course, MF would need one on the lift, the second hill, the third hill, each turn, etc.
Jman
Jman
The principle of a lightning rid is to generate a nice sharp edge that static can build one and discharge to/from. Now - the lightning rod is designed so that the millions of volts and way too many amps run along that nice, gentle, oh-so conducting wire and into the ground -- as opposed to into the expensive ride controller.
I think SOB had some problems because its structure [wood] doesn't conduct nearly as well as MF's does.
I think SOB had some problems because its structure [wood] doesn't conduct nearly as well as MF's does.
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