WORLD FIRST: JAPAN CLAIMS NEW DRONE CAN INDUCE LIGHTNING STRIKES

Summary from the TLDR newsletter

Japan's Nippon Telegraph and Telephone group claims to have created a drone that can induce and guide lightning strikes. The technology could theoretically be used to protect cities and infrastructure from lightning damage. A wire is attached to the drone - when a switch is flicked, a surge of electrical energy runs through the wire, grounding the drone electrically. This allegedly increases the strength of the drone's surrounding electric field, triggering and attracting a lightning strike. A video that explains how the technology works is available in the article.