Verification of lightning strike incidence as a Poisson process

Recordings of lightning strikes to a wide range of practical structures are used to investigate the statistical nature of lightning strike incidence. Using the scatter of the lightning incidence onto a given attractive area, comparisons are made between the theoretically estimated and the observed strike incidence. It is shown that the strike frequency data are well described by a Poisson distribution for the ground flash density and a log-normal distribution for lightning current. The uncertainties in the estimation of ground flash density are determined, taking into account factors such as year-to-year variability and the observation time span.     

Narrow positive bipolar radiation from lightning observed in Sri Lanka

Narrow positive bipolar pulses (NPBPs), whose origin largely remains unknown as yet, have occasionally been noticed in Sri Lanka. These discharges are found to be opposite in polarity to that of negative return strokes, and are found to occur at the beginning and active stage of thunderstorm activities in Sri Lanka. They are emitted from the thunderstorms that produce other activities also and are relatively narrower, bipolar and isolated in nature. They are neither preceded by leader-type pulses nor succeeded by the subsequent activities and hence, could not be associated with any other known activity. Similar radiations have previously been identified and termed as NPBPs. Their features are indeed unique and different from the other known thunderstorm electrical processes. These events have been found to be accompanied by the HF radiations at 5 and 10 MHz, at the trailing part of the pulse. However, such narrow, bipolar and isolated events have not been observed in Sweden, during a lightning measurement campaign at Uppsala, in 2006. So, it is speculated that the meteorological conditions to be responsible for the thunderstorm activity to produce such pulses. Features of such pulses recorded on different thunderstorm days in 2005 and 2006 have been analyzed and presented in this study.The average rise time (10–90%) (Tr), of the pulses was found to be 2.6 μs, the average zero crossing time (Tz) was found to be 5.85 μs, the average duration of slow front (Ts) was found to be 1.86 μs, and the average ratio of amplitude of overshoot to the corresponding peak amplitude (Os/Pa) of these pulses was found to be 0.39.     

Propagation effects on radiation field pulses generated by cloud lightning flashes

As the electromagnetic fields propagate over finitely conducting ground, selective attenuation of the high frequencies takes place. As a result, the signatures of broad-band electromagnetic radiation fields generated by lightning flashes change as they propagate over such ground. In addition to being a function of the electrical parameters of the ground over which the electromagnetic fields propagate, these propagation effects depend on the height of their source above ground level. This makes the propagation effects on radiation fields from cloud flashes differ from those on the radiation fields generated by return strokes in ground flashes. In this paper the propagation effects on radiation field pulses of cloud flashes are illustrated and it is shown that these effects are not as severe as those of return strokes in ground flashes.     

Pressure variations in peat as a result of gas bubble dynamics

Transient high pore‐water pressures, up to 50 cm higher than ambient pressure, developed over the summer season at various depths in a shallow (1 m) fen peat. The excess pressures had a pattern of gradual increases and sharp drops, and their initiation and release typically corresponded to abrupt changes in atmospheric pressure. We conclude that these phenomena depend on gas bubbles (probably methane) generated by biological activity, both by clogging pores and by building up pressure as they grow. These transient and spatially discontinuous high‐pressure zones were found using pressure transducers in sealed (backfilled) pits, but not in piezometers open to the atmosphere. Piezometers may provide a conduit for the release of gas and pressure, thus rendering them unsuitable for measuring this phenomenon. Although the development of localized zones of high pressure causes erratic and unpredictable hydraulic gradients, we suggest that their effect on the flow of water or solutes is offset by the reduced permeability caused by the bubbles, which allows them to be sustained. These zones, however, probably deflect flows driven by the dominant hydraulic gradients. Furthermore, they may cause the peat volume to adjust (swell). The use and interpretation of traditional methods for estimating hydraulic head and conductivity in peat soils thus require great caution. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modeling of thundercloud VHF/UHF radiation on the lightning preliminary breakdown stage

It is well known that there are two basic parts of electromagnetic emissions from a thunderstorm cloud. The first one is due to a return stroke and the second is generated by microdischarges on the lightning preliminary stage and between successive return strokes. The purpose of this paper is to consider the second part of electromagnetic emissions from thunderstorm clouds in a frequency range from one to hundreds of MHz. A new approach is developed, which is based on a three-dimensional computer simulation of microdischarge activity in thunderstorm clouds. We suggest that microdischarges on the lightning preliminary stage are connected with the growth of internal electric cell structures in a thunderstorm cloud. The characteristic scale of cells ranges from ten to hundred meters. The source of these cells can be a beam-plasma-like instability in the thunderstorm cloud medium where microdischarges appear as a saturation mechanism for this instability. Interaction of neighboring cells leads to the formation of dynamic chains of microdischarges. Following step-by-step computer simulations, we calculate radio emissions from every microdischarge and sum up the wave amplitudes from all intracloud volume at the reception point. The standard model for a separate microdischarge current is adopted, and the electromagnetic radiation is estimated in the far zone. We obtain the waveforms of electromagnetic field, the temporal development of radiation and the number of electromagnetic pulses. We have found that signal statistics and calculated frequency spectra exhibit a universal power-law (fractal) behavior. The results of simulations are found to be in satisfactory agreement with the experimental data, because the model waveforms demonstrate a close similarity to the observed ones. Also the temporal development with the duration of pulse trains from ten to hundreds of microseconds and the microdischarge number rate up to hundreds of thousands per second are in agreement with the corresponding experimental data.     

Characteristics of Japanese winter sprites and their parent lightning as estimated by VHF lightning and ELF transients

Sprites are newly discovered optical emissions in the mesosphere over large thunderstorms. This paper is the observational summary of winter sprites in the Hokuriku area of Japan and their parent lightning in the winter of 2004/2005, by using the coordinated optical and electromagnetic (VHF and ELF) measurements in Japan. As the results of optical observations at two stations, we have found that this campaign has yielded a variety of sprite shapes; V-angle shaped structures have been often observed (25%) in addition to columnar structures familiar for us. All of the sprite events are found to be associated with $+$CG lightning, as seen from the macroscopic information by ELF data at Moshiri. However, examining the microscopic properties of parent lightning as seen from the VHF SAFIR lightning detection network, has suggested very complicated characteristics of parent lightning discharges inducing sprites, as compared with the ELF data. One half of the sprite events are also found to be associated with $+$CG by the SAFIR observation, but another half has yielded rather new results as compared with earlier results. Four events are definitely associated with $-$CG and the remaining three events, inter-cloud flashes. The overall picture for Japanese winter sprites and their parent lightning discharges, is significantly different from that for the summer-time, continental sprites. This is indicative of complexity of winter lightning in the Hokuriku area of Japan and this would provide new information on the sprite generation mechanism.     

Attempts to create ball lightning with triggered lightning

We describe attempts to create ball lightning by directing lightning, triggered from natural thunderclouds using the rocket-and-wire technique, through a variety of materials. Some of the observed phenomena have features in common with natural ball lightning or with laboratory attempts to create it: flame-like luminosity for up to 0.5 s above salt water; constant-luminosity silicon fragments falling for about 1 s under the influence of gravity; a 0.7 m region of stationary luminosity whose bottom was 0.3 m above a stainless steel surface to which arcing had occurred; and a glow for about 0.5 s above pine tree sections.     

On lightning forecasting

Summary An exact forecasting of lightning is not possible so far. On the other hand situations occur to-day more often than in earlier times in which the best lightning protection is not sufficient to prevent harmful effects of lightning strokes. For this reason it should be attempted to use informations from the field of atmospheric electricity to improve the existing possibilities of lightning forecasting. These improvements are shortly pointed out, further experiments are under way.

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Zusammenfassung Eine genaue Blitzvorhersage ist bis jetzt nicht möglich. Da aber Situationen, in denen auch eine gute Blitzschutzanlage schädliche Blitzwirkungen nicht mehr ausreichend verhindern kann, heute häufiger als früher vorkommen, muss wenigstens versucht werden, die luftelektrischen Erkenntnisse für eine Verbesserung der Vorhersage von Blitzschlägen zu verwenden. Hier gegebene Möglichkeiten werden erwähnt, weitere Versuche sind im Gange.

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Résumé Nous sommes encore très éloignés de la possibilité de prédire exactement la foudre. Mais, dans la pratique, la nécessité d'améliorer les méthodes de prédiction, en usage jusqu'à maintenant, ne peut pas être désavouée, parce qu'il y a de plus en plus installations, opérations et instruments sensibles pour lesquelles aussi la meilleure protection contre la foudre ne serait plus suffisante. Des possibilités données pour ce but sont discutées, tandis que des nouveaux expériments on été mis en train par l'auteur.

     

The stratosphere as a modulator of ultraviolet radiation into the Biosphere

A review is provided of the current state of knowledge of the penetration of ultraviolet radiation through the atmosphere. Special emphasis is placed on discussing the impact of ozone depletions. Needs for improved knowledge are identified and recommendations for future actions are provided.     

The bubble chamber and mechanism of bubble growth

Summary Although the bubble chamber was only invented byGlaser in 1952, there are today over a hundred chambers in use in physics laboratories throughout the world. In the field of high energy physics they have proved to be an invaluable tool and already much information has been obtained concerning very energetic particle interactions and properties of «strange» particles by the use of both hydrocarbon and liquid hydrogen chambers.     

Genesis of lightning potentials

Summary The generation of very high atmospheric potentials is ascribed to the sudden separation of a cloud, or portion of it, into an upper and lower section, substantially, of opposite polarities. Said abrupt cut being, the mechanical effect produced by local wind gusts. The related mathematical analysis shows how theoretically infinite voltage spikes may be generated as forced electrical transients when a cloud separates into two sections.     

Stick-slip unstable shear failure as a source of high frequency elastic radiation

Summary The results of laboratory measurements on square perspex models with a stress concentrator under uniaxial compression are presented. An attempt was made to interpret these results in order to determine the mutual relations between the mechanical parameters characterizing the treated models, including their focal zones, parameters of model loading, parameters of seismogenic displacement and parameters of radiated elastic pulses. Particular attention was given to the study of slip displacement, slip velocity, rupture velocity, nucleation points of rupture propagation, nucleation points of elastic radiation and to the frequency analysis of radiated pulses. Measurements of the displacement in the focal zone enabled us to determine the source function, to construct theoretical seismograms in a far field and to compare them with the real pulses from ultrasonic transducers located there. This allowed testing theoretical and experimental approaches to the study of how slip displacement, slip velocity and rupture velocity are related to the parameters of radiated pulses.     

Spatiotemporal characteristics of positive cloud-to-ground lightning discharges and bidirectional leader of the lightning

The negative CG lightning discharges neutralizing negative charges in cloud usually dominate for most of thunderstorms. However, a lot of positive CG light-ning discharges often occur in the disappearing stage of thunderstorms, in the stratiform region of mesoscale convective systems and some supercells producing hail and tornado. Because the positive CG lightning discharges produce larger current of the return stroke and neutralize more charges due to the continuing currents with longer las…     

Correlations between deep convection and lightning activity on a global scale

Satellite observations of cloud top temperature and lightning flash distribution are used to examine the relationship between deep convection and lightning activity over the tropical regions of the northern and southern hemispheres. In agreement with previous work, the analysis of the results shows that, in the summer of both hemispheres, the lightning activity in continental deep convective storms is more intense than that in marine deep convective storms by a factor of between 7 and 10. Furthermore, it was observed that on average the daily lightning rate per 1°×1° grid cell for the southern hemisphere (SH) is about 20% greater than that of the northern hemisphere (NH), which can be attributed to a larger fractional cover by deep convective clouds in the SH. By using a set of independent indicators, it is shown that deep convection and lightning activity over land are well correlated (with correlation coefficients of 0.8 and 0.6 for NH and SH, respectively). This suggests the capacity for observations to act as a possible method of monitoring continental deep convective clouds, which play a key role in regulating the Earth’s climate. Since lightning can be monitored easily from ground networks and satellites, it could be a useful tool for validating the performance of model convective schemes and for monitoring changes in climate parameters.     

Estimation of lightning and sprite parameters based on observation of sprite-producing lightning power spectra

Spectrograms and ELF power spectra of magnetic variations originated from sprite-producing lightning discharges have been analyzed to extract both parent lightning and sprite parameters. Some of the spectrograms and power spectra have been found to have approximately quasi-oscillatory shape in the frequency range 0–40 Hz with maximum repetition period about 15–20 Hz. A theory predicts that this interesting peculiarity of the power spectra can be due to interference between electromagnetic fields originated from the parent lightning discharge and from the sprite. A smooth envelope of the power spectrum was shown to have a form of damped oscillations with period close to reciprocal value of sprite lag time. A technique of extracting sprite parameters based on the sprite-producing lightning power spectrum is proposed. The lack of the first Schumann resonance and other features occasionally observed in spectral resonance structure were also discussed.     

Estimate of NOX production in the lightning channel based on three-dimensional lightning locating system

Based on the VHF lightning locating system,a three-dimensional-space cell-gridded approach is used to extract the lighting channel and calculate the length of the channel.Through clustering of the located radiation sources and then extracting the lightning channel,it can accurately obtain the length of the channel.To validate the feasibility of the approach,a simulation experiment is designed,and it shows the length error is no more than 10%.The relationship between the NO production of per unit arc length and atmospheric pressure obtained in laboratory is applied to the NOX production of per unit flash length at different altitudes in this paper.The channel length and the NOX production of 11 negative cloud-to-ground flashes and 59 intracloud flashes in an isolated thunderstorm in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are calculated.The results show that the average channel lengths of per cloud-to-ground and intracloud flash are 28.9 and 22.3 km respectively;the average NOX productions of per cloud-to-ground and intracloud flash are 1.89×1025 and 0.42×1025 molecules,respectively.     

The theory of lightning photography and a camera of new design

Summary A theoretical study of the optics of lightning cameras shows that the focal length as well as the relative aperture of the lens should be considered in the photography of streamers having the dimensions of the stepped leader. Increasing the focal length increases the useful distance range of the camera and allows it to be run at higher speeds for near photography.The effects produced on the photographs by variations in the dimensions of stepped leaders, the grain size and speed of the emulsion, the light scattered by rain and the camera speed, are critically examined.In conclusion a camera is described which has a lens of focal length 14 cm and a relative aperturef/2. The film, in the form of a belt, is run between two small drums to keep it flat in the image field. It has been possible to obtain records of stepped leaders at a distance of 35 km and the camera shows promise of being able to photograph the pilot streamer.     

Using lightning locating system based on time-of-arrival technique to study three-dimensional lightning discharge processes

A time-of-arrival(TOA) system based on GPS technology for locating VHF radiation sources from lightning has been developed and used in observation sites in the northern Shandong Province,China.The 3D images of the lightning progression have been obtained successfully for the first time in China.The 3D-channel evolutions of typical negative CG,positive CG and IC lightning flashes have been discussed together with the data of fast electric field change.It was found that significant differences existed between the negative and positive CG lightning flashes in terms of the initiation and propagation of the radiation sources.The preliminary breakdown of a negative CG lightning flash propagated at a speed about 5.2×104 m/s.The stepped leader of negative CG lightning flashes was trigged by negative initial breakdown.Thereafter,it propagated downward at a speed of 1.3×105 m/s.The initial process of the positive CG lightning flashes was also a propagation process of negative streamer.These streamers propagated dominantly horizontally in the positive charge region and accumulated positive charges at the origin of the lightning,and as a consequence,initiated downward positive streamers.A new type of lightning discharge that was triggered by a narrow bipolar pulse(NBP) is discussed in this study.The NBP was originated at altitude of about 10.5 km in the upper positive charge region.As a distinct difference from normal IC flash,its channels extended horizontally all around and produced a lot of radiation sources.The source power of the NBP could approach 16.7 kW,which is much greater than that of normal lightning discharge ranging between 100 mW and 500 W.The 3D propagation of this new type of lightning discharge was observed and obtained for the first time in China.The possible initiation mechanism of this new type of light-ning is discussed here.