The only thing fumes are expected to bring in is pollution, but researchers now say car exhausts can also bring lightning strikes and rain. Effect of fumes can have a very pronounced effect on the weather, says a study by Daniel Rosenfeld of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and his colleagues. Counting the lightning strikes in the US during the months of June to August over a duration of ten years from 1998 to 2008, the group figured a relation between vehicle exhausts and lightning strikes.
Increased air pollution and heat from the vehicles creates “stronger updrafts of air and bigger clouds.” The group found that lightning strikes could increase by as much as 25% with pollution. The effect is more pronounced in suburbs as compared to major cities.
Via: ABC News
