scholarly journals Return stroke speed of cloud-to-ground lightning estimated from elve hole radii

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (24) ◽  
pp. 9182-9187 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. R. Blaes ◽  
R. A. Marshall ◽  
U. S. Inan
Keyword(s):  
Return Stroke ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning

Investigation of Zero Crossing Detection for First Return Stroke in Negative Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Flash

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Idil Abd Rahman ◽  
◽  
Muhammad Akmal Bahari ◽  
Zikri Abadi Baharudin ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lightning Flash ◽  
Return Stroke ◽  
Zero Crossing ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning

scholarly journals Comprehensive Analysis of a Coast Thunderstorm That Produced a Sprite over the Bohai Sea

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 718
Author(s):  
Cong Pan ◽  
Jing Yang ◽  
Kun Liu ◽  
Yu Wang
Keyword(s):  
Bohai Sea ◽  
Mesoscale Convective System ◽  
Convective System ◽  
Return Stroke ◽  
Absolute Value ◽  
Transient Luminous Events ◽  
Stratiform Region ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Mesoscale Convective ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning

Sprites are transient luminous events (TLEs) that occur over thunderstorm clouds that represent the direct coupling relationship between the troposphere and the upper atmosphere. We report the evolution of a mesoscale convective system (MCS) that produced only one sprite event, and the characteristics of this thunderstorm and the related lightning activity are analyzed in detail. The results show that the parent flash of the sprite was positive cloud-to-ground lightning (+CG) with a single return stroke, which was located in the trailing stratiform region of the MCS with a radar reflectivity of 25 to 35 dBZ. The absolute value of the negative CG (−CG) peak current for half an hour before and after the occurrence of the sprite was less than 50 kA, which was not enough to produce the sprite. Sprites tend to be produced early in the maturity-to-dissipation stage of the MCS, with an increasing percentage of +CG to total CG (POP), indicating that the sprite production was the attenuation of the thunderstorm and the area of the stratiform region.

A Review of Positive and Bipolar Lightning Discharges

2003 ◽  
Vol 84 (6) ◽  
pp. 767-776 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. A. Rakov
Keyword(s):  
Forest Fires ◽  
Return Stroke ◽  
Winter Storms ◽  
Convective Systems ◽  
Lightning Channel ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Mesoscale Convective ◽  
Lightning Discharges ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning ◽  
Positive Return

Characteristics of lightning discharges that transport either positive charge or both positive and negative charges to the ground are reviewed. These are termed positive and bipolar lightning discharges, respectively. Different types of positive and bipolar lightning are discussed. Although positive lightning discharges account for 10% or less of global cloud-to-ground lightning activity, there are five situations that appear to be conducive to the more frequent occurrence of positive lightning. These situations include 1) the dissipating stage of an individual thunderstorm, 2) winter thunderstorms, 3) trailing stratiform regions of mesoscale convective systems, 4) some severe storms, and 5) thunderclouds formed over forest fires or contaminated by smoke. The highest directly measured lightning currents (near 300 kA) and the largest charge transfers (hundreds of coulombs or more) are thought to be associated with positive lightning. Two types of impulsive positive current waveforms have been observed. One type is characterized by rise times of the order of 10 μs, comparable to those for first strokes in negative lightning, and the other type is characterized by considerably longer rise times, up to hundreds of microseconds. The latter waveforms are apparently associated with very long, 1–2 km, upward negative connecting leaders. The positive return-stroke speed is of the order of 108 m s−1. Positive flashes are usually composed of a single stroke. Positive return strokes often appear to be preceded by significant in-cloud discharge activity, then followed by continuing currents, and involve long horizontal channels. In contrast to negative leaders, which are always optically stepped when they propagate in virgin air, positive leaders seem to be able to move either continuously or in a stepped fashion. The reported percentage of bipolar flashes in summer storms ranges from 6% to 14% and from 5% to 33% in winter storms. Bipolar lightning discharges are usually initiated by upward leaders from tall objects. It appears that positive and negative charge sources in the cloud are tapped by different upward branches of the bipolar-lightning channel.

Pre- and Postupgrade Distributions of NLDN Reported Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Characteristics in the Contiguous United States

2010 ◽  
Vol 138 (9) ◽  
pp. 3623-3633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott D. Rudlosky ◽  
Henry E. Fuelberg
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
General Increase ◽  
Return Stroke ◽  
Southeast United States ◽  
Peak Current ◽  
Lightning Detection ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning ◽  
Increased Sensitivity ◽  
Weak Peak

Abstract The National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) underwent a major upgrade during 2002–03 that increased its sensitivity and improved its performance. It is important to examine cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning distributions before and after this upgrade because CG characteristics depend on both measurement capabilities and meteorological variability. This study compares preupgrade (1996–99, 2001) and postupgrade (2004–09) CG distributions over the contiguous United States to examine the influence of the recent upgrade and to provide baseline postupgrade averages. Increased sensitivity explains most of the differences in the pre- and postupgrade distributions, including a general increase in total CG and positive CG (+CG) flash densities. The increase in +CG occurs despite the use of a greater weak +CG threshold for removing ambiguous +CG reports (post 15 kA versus pre 10 kA). Conversely, the average +CG percentage decreased from 10.61% to 8.65% following the upgrade. The average +CG (−CG) multiplicity increased from 1.10 (2.05) before to 1.54 (2.41) after the upgrade. Since true +CG flashes rarely contain more than one return stroke, explanations for the greater than unity +CG multiplicities remain unclear. Postupgrade results indicate that regions with mostly weak peak current +CG flashes now exhibit greater average +CG multiplicities, whereas regions with mainly strong +CG flashes now exhibit smaller average +CG multiplicities. The combination of NLDN performance, meteorological conditions, and physical differences in first −CG return strokes over saltwater produce maxima in −CG multiplicity and peak current over the coastal waters of the southeast United States.

scholarly journals The Impact of Cloud-To-Ground Lightning Type on the Differences in Return Stroke Peak Current Over Land and Ocean

IEEE Access ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 174774-174781
Author(s):  
Kenneth L. Cummins ◽  
Jennifer G. Wilson ◽  
Amy S. Eichenbaum
Keyword(s):  
Return Stroke ◽  
Peak Current ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals First versus subsequent return-stroke current and field peaks in negative cloud-to-ground lightning discharges

2008 ◽  
Vol 113 (D19) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amitabh Nag ◽  
Vladimir A. Rakov ◽  
Wolfgang Schulz ◽  
Marcelo M. F. Saba ◽  
Rajeev Thottappillil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Return Stroke ◽  
Lightning Discharges ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning

The relationship of leader and return stroke processes in cloud-to-ground lightning

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 (19) ◽  
pp. 2613-2616 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladislav Mazur ◽  
Lothar H. Ruhnke ◽  
Pierre Laroche
Keyword(s):  
Return Stroke ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

Constraining the Origin Altitude of the first Satellite-Detected Reverse-Beam Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flash Produced by a Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Leader. 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Chaffin ◽  
David Smith ◽  
Steven Cummer ◽  
Yunjiao Pu ◽  
Michael Splitt
Keyword(s):  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Radio Pulse ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Positron Beam ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Return Stroke ◽  
Cloud To Ground Lightning ◽  
Main Discharge ◽  
Lightning Leader ◽  
Meteorological Analysis

<p>We provide an updated analysis of the gamma-ray signature of a terrestrial gamma ray flash (TGF) detected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor first reported by Pu et al. 2020. Gamma-ray photons were produced 3ms prior to a negative cloud-to-ground return stroke and were close to simultaneous with an isolated low frequency radio pulse during the leaders propagation, with a polarity indicating downward moving negative charge. This ‘slow’ low frequency signal occurring prior to the main discharge has previously been strongly correlated with upward directed TGF events (Pu et al. 2019, Cummer et al. 2011) leading the authors to conclude that the Fermi detected counts just prior to the return stroke are the result of a reverse positron beam generating upward directed gamma rays.<span>  </span>We investigate the feasibility of this scenario and constrain the limits on the origin altitude from the perspective of the gamma-ray signature timing uncertainties, TGF Monte Carlo simulations, estimates of intrinsic brightness as a function of altitude, and meteorological analysis of the storm and its possible charge structure and altitude.</p>

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