Lightning is a powerful force, one seemingly capable of great destruction in the right circumstances. It announces itself with a searing flash, followed by a deep rumble heard for miles around.

MOSCOW -- The plane that burst into flames while making an emergency landing at a Moscow airport, killing 41 of the 78 people on board, was without radio communications because of a lightning strike, ...

Anyone who has flown through a storm knows that uneasy feeling when turbulence picks up and the sky begins to flash. For many travellers, the idea of lightning striking the aircraft is terrifying. But ...