The number of lightning strikes across the UK has been significantly affected by solar activity, according to new research.
Scientists say the Sun's magnetic field is bending the Earth's own field, increasing our exposure to cosmic rays.
These rays are believed to increase the number of thunderclouds and trigger lightning bolts in some locations.
Over five years, the UK experienced 50% more strikes when the Earth's magnetic field was affected by the Sun.
Fields of influence
The manner is which lightning bolts are triggered has long puzzled scientists as the air is known to be a good insulator of electricity.
Something else needs to come into play to conduct the electrical charges built up in thunder clouds down to the ground.
Since the 1990s, researchers have speculated that the magnetic activity of the Sun could be linked to lightning on Earth.
Current theories hold that high energy particles called galactic cosmic rays provide the necessary link that lets the current flow into a lightning bolt.
This latest work suggests that the orientation of the Sun's magnetic field is playing a significant role in the number of strikes.
The researchers believe the field is like a bar magnet, so as our star spins around sometimes the field points towards the Earth and sometimes away.
"What we found was there is significantly more lightning in the UK when the field is pointing towards the Sun than when its pointing away which was surprising," said Dr Matt Owens from the University of Reading, the lead author on the study.
"What we think is happening is that the Sun's magnetic field is pulling or pushing on the Earth's field and that's letting energetic charged particles down into the atmosphere at different locations and the idea is that these actually trigger lightning."
"For lightning, you need a thin conducting channel like a wire, and galactic cosmic http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30103561rays can provide this thin column of ionisation in the atmosphere."READ MORE-
The way geckos climb has inspired a device that allowed a 70kg man to scale a glass wall like Spider-Man.
Much research has gone into trying to unlock the clever way that little geckos climb.
But trying to use gecko adhesion to work at larger scales - such as on a human hand - without any loss of performance has proven difficult.
The hand-sized silicone pads created by a team at Stanford University keep their adhesive strength at all sizes.
They employ the same attractive and repulsive forces between molecules - known as van der Waals forces - that geckos use.
Although the forces are very weak, the effect is multiplied across the many tiny hairs that cover the toes of a gecko, allowing them to stick firmly to surfaces.
Along the same lines, the Stanford team created tiny tiles called microwedges to harness van der Waals forces. They were able to produce a dry adhesive even more efficient than that of the gecko.
In tests, the 70kg (11 stone) climber successfully scaled a 3.6m-high vertical glass wall using 140 sq cm silicone pads in each hand.
The climber tested the adhesive hundreds of times on the wall without failure.
Earlier this year, America's Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) demonstrated another climbing device which allowed a person to scale a sheer glass wall.
However, the exact details of their climbing method remain classified.
This latest effort was also a collaboration with Darpa. The agency's Z-Man programme aims to develop biologically-inspired climbing aids for soldiers without the need for ropes and ladders.
The team at Stanford have published their findings in the Royal Society journal Interface.
Beavers living on the River Otter in Devon could be allowed to remain in the wild if free of disease.
The government had intended to capture six beavers, test for disease and re-home them in captivity.
It is unclear where the beavers came from, but campaigners say they should be allowed to stay.
The government has now indicated that the beavers could be tested near the river and released if disease-free.
In October, environmental charity Friends of the Earth, launched a legal challenge over the government's claim that the beavers were non-native, could be diseased, and should be removed.
It is believed the group, including three juveniles born this year, are the only wild beavers in England.
'Positive steps'
A spokeswoman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said: "Our priority has been to ensure humane treatment for the beavers while safeguarding human health, so we'll be testing the beavers close to the River Otter which will be better for their welfare than moving them elsewhere.red more-http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-30043619
A roadside bench matching the one that featured in the opening credits of BBC sitcom Bottom has been officially unveiled in London.
It follows an online campaign by fans after the death of Rik Mayall.
The show's star said shortly before he died in June that he was sad to see the bench had been removed.
Now after a petition by 7,000 fans, Hammersmith Council has replaced it, with the inscription "In Memory of The Man, The Myth, The Legend"read more-http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-30018809
