Extremely high lightning peak currents

Lightning flashes are still a major cause of injury, fire, mechanical destruction and, above all, surges. Time and again there are reports of extremely high lightning currents which, of course, can cause considerable damage and destruction. In some cases, peak values of over 300 kA are mentioned. This throws up questions because the ``classical'' lightning statistics (e.g., CIGRE and IEC [9], [11]) do not recognize such values. These extreme lightning currents are, as a rule, identified using the data provided by lightning detection systems. This article will examine such extreme lightning currents. The necessary fundamentals of lightning detection will be explored as well as the limits when verifying extreme values. ``Classical'' lightning statistics and further studies of extreme lightning currents will be discussed.