Fun Energy Facts

• A stroke of lightning discharges from 10 to 100 million volts and 30,000 amperes of electricity.
• A bolt of lightning is about 30,000°C; six times hotter than the Sun.
• It is energy-efficient to turn off a fluorescent light only if it will not be used again within an hour or more. This is because of the high voltage needed to turn it on, and the shortened life this high voltage causes.
• 15% of domestic electricity is used for refrigeration, and a third of ACT houses have more than one refrigerator!
• 87% of Iceland is powered by geothermal energy. The naturally occurring hot springs and geysers are harnessed and used to power most of the island.
• Birds warm their feet using the top line on high-voltage lines.
• The word ’Electra’ is Greek for ’amber’.
• The first power station in the ACT began operating in 1915.
• The first areas to be electrified in the ACT were Duntroon and Acton.