We specialize in hard to find items
All Categories
About Fulgurite Lightning Fossil
Sand (silicon dioxide) melts at 1,605 degrees C (3,002 degrees F), but the temperature in a bolt of lightning can reach 30,000 Kelvin. When lightning strikes sand the particles can melt and fuse together in less than a second. If conditions are right, the fused sand can take on the form of the lightning bolt. Because the shapes of fulgurite specimens relect the paths of the lightning bolts as they are dispersed into the ground, fulgurite is sometimes called 'fossilized lightning'. The name fulgurite comes from th Latin word fulgur which means 'lightning flash' or "thunderbolt." Although lightning strikes earth at least a million times a day, only rarely does fulgurite form. Origin: Sahara Desert, Africa.
