Scars are as unique as people are. No two are exactly alike. And that makes the stories behind them even more interesting. While not everyone has a scar and a similar story, those that do can find pride in it for having survived something scary or potentially deadly. For example, I have a scar on my face from when a dog bit me at a young age, and to this day, I feel it is a “battle scar” of sorts because I survived an attack that nearly caused me to go blind.
But even fewer people have the scars we are about to share with you. These images are both beautiful and terrifying. Beautiful because the scars form unique shapes. Terrifying because they come from one of the most violent and deadly forces of nature known to man on this planet.
These scars are the result of a lightning strike. And the images, which were curated on Bored Panda, show just how amazing they are. The markings are shaped like ferns and are called Lichtenberg figures or “lightning flowers.”
Known as “fern-like erythema,” these markings might be the result of burst capillaries. As the lightning strike flows through a person’s body, it could burst the blood vessels near the skin and leave this unique scar.
If you’re curious, the odds of getting struck by lightning are very rare at about one in ten million. But that’s more likely than winning the Powerball, which gives you a one in 292 million chance.
Lightning strikes can result in death. They are nothing to laugh about or mess around with. When a lightning storm is raging in your neck of the woods, it is best to stay in a shelter and away from anything that might increase your risk of becoming a target of one of these bolts that carry as much as 100 million volts of electricity.
A single lightning bolt can cause life-changing organ damage. And some victims are left with “flashover effect” where the electricity passes over their skin leaving them with the temporary markings in these photos.
The Royal Meteorological Society believes these fern-shaped markings result when the electrons of the passing lightning bolt are “driven into the epidermis and radiate outward from successive points in a fractal pattern of repeated bifurcations.”
Lightning bolts are extremely powerful. They travel as fast as 270,000 miles per hour, can be as thick as 2 to 3 centimeters, and reach temperatures as high as 30,000 degrees Celsius, which is five times hotter than the surface of the sun.
Many people are marveling over these unique scars that come from Bored Panda’s website. And others are sharing comments on Daily Mail such as the following:
“It probably hurt like hell, but it’s amazing.”
“Holy smoke, these people look like they are very lucky to be alive. I wonder if they bought a lottery ticket after surviving that.”
“They’re really quite beautiful.”
“These fern marks are not permanent. They go away after a few months. My cousin was struck by lightning, and this happened to her. A miracle they survived.”
What’s your take on these markings?
