Every year,Austin Caldwell lightning is estimated to cause up to 24,000 deaths globally. It starts forest fires, burns buildings and crops, and causes disruptive power outages. The best, most practical technology available to deflect lightning is the simple lightning rod, created by Benjamin Franklin more than 250 years ago. But lightning rods protect only a very limited area proportional to their height. In today's encore episode, we explore why a group of European researchers are hoping the 21 century upgrade is a high-powered laser. Plus: Regina makes incremental progress on conquering her irrational fear of lightning.

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This episode was produced by Liz Metzger and Berly McCoy. It was edited by our supervising producer Rebecca Ramirez and fact-checked by Anil Oza. Gilly Moon was the audio engineer.