Scientists have used cosmic rays from the distant universe to study lightning and thunderclouds in unprecedented detail . Cosmic rays constantly bombard Earth ’ s atmosphere , and there have been some suggestions they could even trigger lightning . But this particular experiment observed how cosmic rays were affected by lightning as they passed through it - providing information on the electrical field of a given storm . Scientists in The Netherlands were using the Lofar radio telescope . They found it could measure changes in lightning caused by cosmic rays ( illustrated ) . A storm can have hundreds of millions of volts over multiple kilometres . The method could provide a novel way to understand thunderclouds . The experiment was conducted using the Lofar ( Low-Frequency Array ) radio telescope in the Netherlands . Researchers found , almost by accident , that cosmic rays were a suitable probe to measure electric fields within thunderclouds . High in the atmosphere , the rays strike atmospheric molecules and create ‘ showers ’ of elementary particles - the smallest known to exist . A long-standing puzzle in astrophysics is the source of ultra-high-energy particles from space that hit Earth . Called cosmic rays , they 're up to a billion times more energetic than particles at Cern 's Large Hadron Collider . They strike the atmosphere and cause an enormous shower of other particles , mostly muons , electrons and photons , over a wide area . Though they were discovered decades ago , cosmic rays at these high energies are very rare , making it difficult to pinpoint where in the universe they originated . It 's thought that some come from supernovae , but it 's likely there are other sources of cosmic rays in the universe as well . These showers can be measured from the radio emissions that are generated when they interact with Earth ’ s magnetic field . By measuring this during a thunderstorm , the researchers found they could find out information about the electric field in a thundercloud as it affected the radio emissions . It was found to be as strong as 50 kilovolts per one metre ( 3.3ft ) - which translates into a voltage of hundreds of millions of volts over multiple kilometres , an enormous amount of energy . 'We modeled how the electric field in thunderstorms can explain the different measurements , ’ said researcher Dr Pim Schellart from Radboud University in the Netherlands . ‘ This worked very well . How the radio emission changes gives us a lot of information about the electric fields in thunderstorms . ‘ We could even determine the strength of the electric field at a certain height in the cloud. ’ Though they were discovered decades ago , cosmic rays at these high energies are very rare , making it difficult to pinpoint where in the universe they originated . It 's thought that some come from supernovae ( illustrated ) , but it 's likely there are other sources of cosmic rays in the universe as well . Lightning is a highly unpredictable natural phenomenon that inflicts damage to infrastructure and claims many victims around the world each year . This new method to measure electric fields in thunderclouds will contribute to a better understanding and ultimately better predictions of lightning activity . Current measurement methods from planes , balloons or little rockets are dangerous and too localised . Most importantly , the presence of the measurement equipment influences the measurements too . Cosmic rays probe the thunderclouds from top to bottom . Moving at almost the speed of light they provide a near instantaneous 'picture ' of the electric fields in the cloud . Moreover , they are created by nature and are freely available . 'This research is an exemplary form of interdisciplinary collaboration between astronomers , particle physicists and geophysicists ' , said Dr Heino Falcke , also from Radboud University . 'We hope to develop the model further to ultimately answer the question : how is lightning initiated within thunderclouds ? ' Lightning ( shown in Utah ) is a highly unpredictable natural phenomenon that inflicts damage to infrastructure and claims victims around the world . This new method to measure electric fields in thunderclouds will contribute to a better understanding and ultimately better predictions of lightning activity .
Scientists in The Utah were using the Lofar radio telescope . They found it could measure changes in lightning caused by cosmic rays . A storm can have hundreds of millions of volts over multiple kilometres . Method could provide a novel way to understand thunderclouds .