Lightning strikes Rio de Janeiro is due to urbanization?

A Brazilian expert who came up with an interesting hypothesis showed that it was the urban development of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that attracted more thunderstorms to the city.

>>>Learn about lightning - the deadly beauty of nature

The statue of the Redeemer of Christ in Rio de Janeiro is often hit by lightning - (Photo: AFP)

O Globo quoted Osmar Pinto Jr as an expert in urban development, particularly in Rio de Janeiro, which led to an increase in charge clouds.

'As the city is increasingly urbanized, it forms a heat island because trees are replaced by asphalt and houses , ' BBC quoted Pinto experts.

As a result, charge clouds form when cold air currents conflict with the city's wet climate.

Dr. Pinto, of the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research, said the trend of increasingly polluted air also attracted more strikes to Rio de Janeiro.

Only the statue of Christ the Redeemer on the 710m high mountain has twice caught lightning within eight days.

On average this project was struck by lightning three to five times a year, and the last time it was hit, the statue lost a finger.