Lightning may be key to cleansing atmosphere of toxins, greenhouse gases, study says

Hydroxyl radicals, which are "crucial" to the atmosphere's ability to cleanse itself, are directly produced by flashes of lightning.

Perhaps we should be praying to the lightning gods for cleaner air and the solution to the climate crisis. Hydroxyl radicals, which are "crucial" to the atmosphere's ability to cleanse itself, are directly produced by flashes of lightning, and those flashes produce the radicals in quantities far greater than expected, a new study published Thursday in Science found. They are the "most important" oxidizing species due to its ability to control the concentrations of toxic and "climate-relevant" gases such as carbon monoxide and methane, according to the paper, which analyzes a 2012 airborne study. In their quest to understand the benefits of a lightning bolt, scientists also discovered a previously unknown mechanism thought to be responsible for a large proportion of oxidation in the atmosphere.