The use and range of traditional lightning rods are limited, especially in difficult-to-equip places like wind turbines and outdoor event spaces. NTT has been investigating drone-based lightning induction, a cutting-edge technique that uses drones to monitor thunderclouds, intentionally trigger lightning, and safely reroute it, in order to remedy this issue.
In a recent field demonstration under natural thundercloud conditions, NTT, in collaboration with Fujitsu, successfully tested this concept. The experiment featured two key technologies: lightning induction using electric field fluctuations to attract lightning to a drone, and a specially designed lightning-resistant cage that prevents drone failure even under direct strikes.