Positive Charge Region in Lower Part of Thunderstorm and Preliminary Breakdown Process of Negative Cloud-to-Ground Lightning

A new lightning locating technology, called Lightning Mapping Array （LMA）, has been developed. The system takes advantage of GPS technology to measure the times of arrival （TOA） of lightning impulsive very high frequency （VHF） radiation events at each remote location. The spatiotemporal development processes of lightning are described in three-dimension by measurement of the system with high time resolution （50 ns） and space precision （50-100 m）. The charge structures in thunderstorm and their relationship with lightning discharge processes are revealed. The temporal and spatial characteristics of preliminary breakdown process involved in negative cloud-to-ground （CG） lightning discharges are analyzed based on the data of lightning VHF radiation events. The effect of positive charge region in lower part of thunderstorm on the occurrence of negative CG lightning discharge is discussed. The results indicate that the preliminary breakdown process with longer duration in negative CG lightning discharges is an intracloud discharge process. It occurs between negative and positive charge regions located in middle and lower parts of thunderstorm respectively. It initiates from the negative charge region and propagates downward. After propagating into the positive charge region, the lightning channel develops horizontally. The characteristics of the preliminary breakdown process are consistent with that of intracloud lightning discharges. The stepped leaders are initiated by the K type breakdown which occurs in the last stage of the preliminary breakdown process and develops downward through the positive charge region. The existence of positive charge region in lower part of thunderstorm results in the occurrence of preliminary breakdown process with longer duration before the return stroke of negative CG lightning discharges.

Estimation of Lightning-Generated NO_(x) in the Mainland of China Based on Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Location Data

Lightning-generated nitrogen oxides(LNO_(x))have a major influence on the atmosphere and global climate change.Therefore,it is of great importance to obtain a more accurate estimation of LNO_(x).The aim of this study is to provide a reference for the accurate estimation of the total LNO_(x) in the mainland of China based on cloud-to-ground lightning(CG)location data from 2014 to 2018.The energy of each CG flash was based on the number of return strokes per CG flash,the peak current of each return stroke,and the assumed CG breakdown voltage.The energy of intracloud lightning(IC)was based on the estimated frequencies of IC and the assumed energy of each IC flash.Combining the energy of lightning and the number of nitric oxide(NO)molecules produced by unit energy(ρno),the total LNO_(x) production in the mainland of China was determined.The LNO_(x) in the mainland of China estimated in this study is in the range(0.157-0.321)×10^(9) kg per year[Tg(N)yr-1],which is on the high end of other scholars’works.Negative cloud-to-ground lightning(NCG)flashes produce the most moles of NO_(x),while positive cloud-to-ground lightning(PCG)flashes produce the least total moles of NO_(x).The breakdown voltage of PCG is greater than that of IC or NCG,while the latter has a greater output of LNO_(x).

Propagation of positive, negative, and recoil leaders in upward lightning flashes

Leader propagation is a fundamental issue in lightning physics. The propagation characteristics of positive leaders and negative leaders are summarized and compared based on data from high-speed camera and electromagnetic field in rocket-triggered lightning and tower-initiated lightning discharges; available channel base current data recorded in rocket-triggered lightning are also used. The negative leaders propagate in a stepped fashion accompanied by many branches. The stems ahead of the negative leader tip determine the manner and direction of the leader propagation, and even the branching and winding of the lightning channel. The impulsive current, electromagnetic field, and related optical images suggest that the positive leader may develop in a step-like fashion at its initial stage of triggered lightning. However, the stepping processes of the positive leader are obviously different from those of the negative leader. Tower-initiated lightning revealed that the most conspicuous characteristics of the stepwise positive leader involve the intermittent brush-like corona zone in front of the leader tip and the luminosity enhancement of the channel behind the tip. In rockettriggered lightning flashes, the charge transferred during an individual step for the negative leader was nearly an order greater than for the positive counterpart. The successive streamers ahead of the leader tip are essential for both negative and positive leader propagation, and the stems could be formed from one or more streamers in the previous negative streamer zone with the main leader channel dim. High-resolution observation of tower lightning also revealed a new type of bidirectional recoil leader, with polarity contrary to the traditional one, traversing in negative channels associated with tower-initiated and rocket-triggered lightning.

The Characteristics of Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Activity with Severe Thunderstorm Wind in South and North China

The characteristics of cloud-to-ground(CG) lightning activity with severe thunderstorm wind(STW) in South and North China are analyzed using CG lightning data, radar data, and serious weather reports. The percentage of positive CG(PCG) flashes with STW in North China is larger than that in South China. STW takes place during the period when the total CG and PCG density is increasing fastest. STW also occurs close to the high-value center of CG and PCG density. In North China, the CG and PCG density in the grid of STW maximizes approximately 20 minutes after the STW occurs; while in South China, the PCG density and percentage of PCG in the grid of STW maximizes about 10 minutes before the occurrence of STW. The high-value centers of CG density and PCG density in North China move slightly faster than those in South China, which is opposite to the rate of increasing CG activity.

Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Lightning Activity in Ulanqab City

From January 2020 to December 2021,Ulanqab Meteorological Bureau of Inner Mongolia used VLF/LF lightning locator to carry out three-dimensional lightning monitoring in Ulanqab City,and compared with ADTD lightning location data in the same period.The results show that both VLF/LF lightning locator and ADTD lightning locator had excellent monitoring ability for lightning during flood season in Ulanqab.VLF/LF lightning locator was slightly superior to ADTD lightning locator in observation accuracy,the observation ability of low-current cloud-to-ground lightning,intracloud lightning observation and so on.There were obvious temporal and spatial characteristics of cloud-to-ground lightning during flood season in Ulanqab,and there was a certain correlation between the areas where lightning appeared frequently and surface water.Intracloud lightning was mainly concentrated at a height of 1-7 km.Negative cloud-to-ground lightning accounted for about 75%of total cloud-to-ground lightning,and negative intracloud lightning accounted for 39%of total intracloud lightning.

Characteristics of Cloud-to-ground Lightning during a Squall Line Process outside of the Subtropical High

Based on the monitoring data of cloud-to-ground( CG) lightning positioning network and Doppler weather radar as well as MICAPS1°× 1° objective analysis field,a squall line process outside of the subtropical high in low-latitude plateau on May 7,2010 was analyzed. The results showed that wind direction shear between low and high levels and low-level convergence zones provided favorable circulation background for the strong thunderstorm process,while high energy and high humidity,strong thermal instability and ascending motion at low and middle levels offered beneficial environmental conditions for the formation of the thunderstorm. 9 620 return strokes of cloud-to-ground lightning were monitored by the lightning positioning network,and cloud-to-ground lightning was distributed like bands between 584 and 586 hP a. The occurrence of cloud-to-ground lightning was mainly related to echo top and echo intensity at-10 ℃ stratification height,and it mainly appeared in zones where echo top height was larger than 13 km and echo intensity at-10 ℃ stratification height was 35-40 dB Z. Wind convergence and maintaining of high radial velocity were favorable for the development of convective echoes and occurrence of cloud-to-ground lightning.

Study on the Scope of Small Amplitude of Cloud-to-ground Lightning in Lightning Weather Monitoring

Based on lightning location data in Chongqing region during 1999-2008,the frequency of lightning in various amplitude ranges and its annual variations were analyzed firstly.Afterwards,with the aid of matlab mathematical software,the distribution of the lightning location data was fitted using logarithmic normal distribution function.The results showed that after data of cloud-to-ground lightning with current amplitude from-5 to5 kA were deleted from lightning location data,the statistical characteristics of cloud-to-ground lightning could be reflected well.Meanwhile,lightning with current amplitude from-5 to 5 kA accounted for 1.05%（less than 2%）,which accorded with the detection principle of lightning position indicator（there existed error detection）.Therefore,cloud-to-ground lightning with current amplitude of-5-5 kA in lightning location data of Chongqing region was defined as small amplitude of cloud-to-ground lightning,which could provide scientific references for the processing of lightning location data in Chongqing region as well as analysis and quality control of lightning location data in other regions.

Studies on the Distribution Characteristics of the Cloud-to-Ground Lightning and Its Disasters Prevention in Xinjiang, China in 2017

Xinjiang, China is affected by geographical terrain and other factors, and is prone to lightning disasters. In order to effectively carry out lightning protection and disaster reduction work and improve defense capabilities, based on the data of lightning location monitoring in Xinjiang in 2017 and the statistics reports of the lightning disasters from 2015 to 2017, the characteristics of the cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning activities and disasters in Xinjiang were statistically analyzed. The results show that the CG lightning in Xinjiang is mainly the negative one, accounting for 79.7% of the total lightning. In 2017, the distribution of positive, negative and total the CG lightning months mainly focuses on June to August, and the main occurrence period is from 14 to 23 hours. The intensity of total the CG lightning and negative the CG lightning mainly distributes from 20 to 40 kA, and the peak value appears in 30 kA. The CG lightning intensity is mainly distributed in 30 - 70 kA. The distribution of the CG lightning density in Xinjiang is larger in the north than in the south and larger in the west than in the east. Lightning disasters mainly occur from May to August, accounting for 93.2 percent of the total, with the largest number in June. From 2005 to 2017, 44.6% of lightning accidents occurred in farming and pastoral areas, followed by civil electronic equipment damage. In addition, electrical equipment, buildings and factory equipment are damaged by lightning strikes to varying degrees.

Characteristics of Cloud-to-ground Lightning during a Local Rainstorm in Meizhou City

Based on cloud-to-ground lightning data of lightning location system,Doppler radar data,and precipitation data of regional automatic weather stations,the characteristics of cloud-to-ground lightning during a local rainstorm on June 4,2016 in Meizhou City were analyzed. The results showed that the spatial distribution of cloud-to-ground lightning from 14： 00 to 20： 00 on June 4,2016 in Meizhou City had obvious local characteristics,and the proportion of negative lightning was larger than that of positive lightning（ only 16. 8%）. The concentration period of positive lightning coincided with that of cloud-to-ground lightning. The peak of proportion of positive lightning lagged behind the peak of cloud-to-ground lightning,and appeared in the late period of thunderstorm disappearance. The dense area of cloud-to-ground lightning and the area with heavy rainfall coincided with the area with strong radar echoes. Doppler weather radar data had the feature of the headwind zone,strong combined reflectivity,vertical height of strong echoes,high echo top,and fast radial movement. The peak of cloud-to-ground lightning appeared one hour earlier than that of precipitation. There was no significant correlation between the frequency of cloud-to-ground lightning and precipitation. The peak of negative lightning corresponded to that of positive lightning,and cloud-to-ground lightning ended earlier than rainfall. After the peak of precipitation,convective system rapidly weakened and disappeared. Precipitation and the frequency of cloud-to-ground lightning fluctuated frequently during the whole process. The jumps and peaks of negative lightning were indicative of rainfall changes.

Analysis on Lightning Activities and Its Disastrous Climate Characteristics in Shandong Province

By using the reported data of lightning disaster and the data of lightning monitoring network in Shandong Province since its establishment,the lightning activities and the disaster climate characteristics in Shandong Province were analyzed.The data were processed by lattice formulation,and the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of positive and negative CG flashes were given.The parameter characteristics of positive and negative ground lightning and its relationship with the lightning disasters were analyzed.And the lightning parameter characteristics of lightning in major cities of Shandong Province were analyzed.

THE STATISTIC RELATION BETWEEN LIGHTNING AND CINRAD DOPPLER RADAR ECHOES IN CENTRAL GUANGDONG

Based on the CINRAD Doppler radar data in Guangzhou and the lightning data in 2004 by power suppliers of Guangdong, statistical study is done by overlaying lightning＇s position on radar＇s echo. The result shows the followings. The concentrated period in which more negative lightning occurred at the middle levels （2 - 14 km）, where radar echo was moderate （12 - 45 dBz）, rather than at the low levels with the weakest echoes or at high levels with the strongest echoes. At levels 3 - 11 km, where the radar echo was between 10 dBz and 35 dBz, the area of negative lightning was much larger in central Guangdong than in the rest of the province. At levels 0.5 - 7 krn where the radar echoes were between 44 dBz and 51 dBz, the probability for a point to have negative lightning varies from 0.4 to 0.7.

Forecasting of Thunder/Lightning Potential

In this paper, the characteristics of thunderstorms in Zibo City were ana- lyzed. The thunderstorms could be divided into cold-front thunderstorm, upper trough （shear line） type thunderstorm and cold-vortex thunderstorm. We also screened out the atmosphere parameters that were highly correlated to the occurrence of thunder/ lightning. They were treated as the predictors. Each possible influencing factor was analyzed on the lightning day correspondingly. Their threshold values were also de- termined. Among them, the parameter that had the highest neutralizing capacity was treated as negative index. For different type of thunderstorm weather, the negative index was different. The application of negative indexes was also discussed. We hope to provide a valuable basis for the accurate forecasting of thunder/lightning.

Observation and study on the whole process of cloud-to-ground lightning using narrowband radio interferometer

A narrowband radio interferometer has been developed and used to locate the entire sources of VHF radiations from a negative cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning discharge which contains 19 strokes. This system uses five antennas to form an array consisting of short- and long-baselines along two or- thogonal directions. The system error which comes from frequency conversion is reduced by phase detection through direct high frequency amplifying. An interactive graphic analysis procedure is used to remove the fringe ambiguities which exist inherently in interferometry and to determine the direction of lightning radiation sources in two dimensions (azimuth and elevation) as a function of time at a time resolution of microsecond orders. With the developed system, the whole progression process in time and space of a lightning flash can be reconstructed. In this paper, combining the synchronous data of electric filed change and VHF radiation, the whole processes of an example negative CG flash have been studied in detail. It is found that the preliminary breakdown event of the CG flash started from negative charge region and exhibited firstly a downward pregression and then an upward propagation. There were very intense and continuous radiations during stepped leaders which became much stronger when the first return stroke began. In contrast, there were less and only discrete radiations during dart leaders. Stepped leader and dart leader may transform to each other depending on the state of the ionization of the path. The progression speed of initial stepped leaders was about 105 ms?1, while that was about 4.1×106 and 6.0×106 ms?1 for dart leaders and dart-stepped leaders, respectively. M events produced hook-shaped field changes accompanied by active burst of radiations at their begin- nings. Followed these active radiation processes, M events appeared to contact finally into conducting main discharge channels. The mean progression speed of M events was about 7×107 ms?1, greater than that of the dart leaders and dart-step leaders. K events and attempted leaders were essentially the same as dart leaders except that they could not reach the ground and initiate return strokes.

A Comparison of the Characteristics of Total and Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Activities in Hailstorms

The region of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei is covered by two different lightning detection networks： SAFIR （Systeme d＇Alerte Fondre par Interferometrie Radioelecctrique） for total lightning, including IntraCloud （IC） flashes and Cloud-to-Ground （CG） flashes, and the ADTD （ADvanced TOA and Direction system; TOA denotes time of arrival） network of China for CG lightning. Fourteen isolated hail-bearing thunderstorms in this region were examined in this study, using the data of SAFIR and ADTD. The peak of lightning frequency, for both total lightning and CG lightning, was often observed in advance of the occurrence of hailstones on the ground, with a trend of a rapid increase of lightning frequency before the hail was reported. The average lead times of the two types of lightning jump before hail events were obtained （total lightning： 32.2 min; CG： 25.4 min） through the 2a lightning jump algorithm. Additionally, in hailstorms with a high ratio of positive CG flashes, the diameter of hail was larger and the duration of hail was longer; when negative CG flashes dominated, the diameter of hail was relatively small. The comparison of the characteristics of total lightning and CG flashes in hailstorms in this study is expected to serve as a supplementary tool for hail forecasting.

ANALYSIS OF CLOUD-TO-GROUND LIGHTNING CHARACTERISTICS IN MESOSCALE STORM IN BELIING AREA

The research indicates that there is a positive correlation between the negative CG flash rate and the area of radar echo with its reflectivity being equal to or greater than 30 dBz in the mesoscale convective system in Beijing area.A max- imum of the positive CG flash rate exists at both the initial and the dissipating stages.The CG flashes are usually located near but not within the high reflectivity center.The negative flashes are associated with.the positions of the updraft re- gion,and with the regions of wind convergence and wind shear.Generally,the negative CG flashes are concentrative and the positive ones are dispersive.

Observations on the leader-return stroke of cloud-to-ground lightning with the broadband interferometer

Radio frequency observations of cloud-to-ground lightning (CG) were made in 1999 in Guangdong Province with the broadband lightning interferometer. In this paper, radiation source locations and electric field waveforms are analyzed for different types of breakdown events, including the preliminary breakdown of in-cloud activities, the stepped leaders of initial strokes to ground and activities during and following return strokes. It is shown that the structure and development of lightning discharges and associated breakdown processes can be reconstructed by using this new type of lightning radiation source location system. The detectable radiation of lightning was primarily produced by the negative breakdown process. The channel was concentrated with few branches during the preliminary breakdown stage of CG lightning flashes. The radiation sources appeared generally at the tip of the channel. During the late period of the stepped leader, the radiation sources were dispersed with branches extended away from the main channel. The radiation sources were in a certain length segment of the channel and the altitude of the segment descended along with the propagation of the leader to the ground. During the preliminary breakdown and the stepped leader of initial strokes to the ground, a sequence of fast negative streamers were observed to start continually from or farther away the lightning-initiated region and propagate along the developed leader channel, which may supply negative charge that assisted the leader's development. The progression speed of fast negative streamers was about ten times faster than the average speed of lightning channel.

Optical Observations on Propagation Characteristics of Leaders in Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Flashes

Using 2 high-speed cameras, we have recorded 14 negative cloud-to-ground （CG） lightning flashes, half of which are natural and the others are artificially triggered. The two-dimensional （2D） propagation speed of different type leaders and the luminosity of lightning channel are analyzed in detail. Bidirectional leader processes are observed during the initial processes of two altitude triggered negative lightning （ATNL） flashes. The analysis shows： the propagation speed of the upward positive leader （UPL） before the initiation of the downward negative leader （DNL） is at the order of 10^4-10^5 m s-1; the UPL can be intensified by the initiation and development of the DNL in the way that the luminosity is enhanced and the speed is sped up; after initiation, the DNL in one ATNL flash propagates downward three times intermittently with interval of about 1 ms, while that in the other ATNL flash propagates downward continuously with a speed at the order of 10^5 m s^-1. In the five classical triggered negative lightning （CTNL） flashes, the propagation speeds of the UPLs vary between 0.35×10^5 and 7.71×10^5 m s-1, and the variations of their luminosities and speeds are quite complex during the development processes. Among the four observed natural negative lightning flashes occurred on the land, three have only one return stoke （RS） each and all of their DNLs have many branches with an average speed at the order of 10^5 m s-l; while the another one has 13 RSs. In the CG flash with 13 RSs, the DNL before the first RS has no obvious branch below 1.4 km above the ground, and its speed ranges from 2.2×10^5 to 2.3×10^6 m s-1 between the heights of 0.7 and 1.4 km and exceeds 3.9×10^6 m s-1 below 0.7 km; preceding the 4th RS, an attempted leader is observed with a speed ranging from 1.1× 10^5 to 1.1×10^6 m s-1 between 0.8 and 1.5 km. As for the three observed natural negative lightning flashes occurred on the sea, each has only one RS, and each DNL preceding the RS has a few branches, two of which have an average propagation speed at the order of 10^5 m s-1, and the other of 10^6 m s-1, respectively. All the DNLs contained in the observed natural negative lightning flashes, except the attempted leader, propagate with gradually increasing luminosity and increasing speed in whole.

A Case Study of Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Activities in Hailstorms under Cold Eddy Synoptic Situation

There were three hailstorms in Shandong Province, caused by a same northeast cold eddy situation on 1 June 2002. Cloud-to-ground （CG） flashes occurring in the weather event were observed by Shandong Lightning Detection Network （SLDN）, which consists of 10 sensors covering all over Shandong Province. The temporal and spatial distributions of CG lightning are investigated for the three hailstorms by using the data from SLDN, Doppler radar and satellite. The results show that different thunderstorms present different lightning features even if under the same synoptic situation. The percentage of positive CG lightning is very high during the period of hail falling. CG flashes mainly occurred in the region with a cloud top brightness temperature lower than -50℃. Negative CG flashes usually clustered in the lower temperature region and tended to occur in the region with maximum temperature gradient, while the positive ones usually spread discretely. Negative CG flashes usually occurred in intense echo regions with reflectivity greater than 50 dBz, while the positive CG flashes often occurred in weak and stable echo regions （10-30 dBz） or cloud anvils, although they can be observed in strong convective regions sometimes. Almost all haft falling took place in the stage with active positive flashes, and the peak positive flash rate is a little prior to the hail events. The thunderstorm could lead to disastrous weather when positive CG lightning activities occur in cluster. Severe thunderstorms sometimes present a low flash rate at its vigorous stage, which is probably caused by the ＂mechanism of chargeregion lift＂ through investigating the reflectivity evolution. Combined with the total lightning （intracloud and CG） data obtained by LIS onboard TRMM, the phenomenon of high ratio of intracloud flash to CG flash in severe hailstorm has been discussed. The competition of the same charge sources between different lightning types can also be helpful for explaining the cause of low CG lightning activities in severe storms.

A PRELIMINARY STUDY ON THUNDERSTORM FORECAST WITH LS-SVM METHOD

The LS-SVM(Least squares support vector machine) method is presented to set up a model to forecast the occurrence of thunderstorms in the Nanjing area by combining NCEP FNL Operational Global Analysis data on 1.0°×1.0° grids and cloud-to-ground lightning data observed with a lightning location system in Jiangsu province during 2007-2008.A dataset with 642 samples,including 195 thunderstorm samples and 447 non-thunderstorm samples,are randomly divided into two groups,one(having 386 samples) for modeling and the rest for independent verification.The predictors are atmospheric instability parameters which can be obtained from the NCEP data and the predictand is the occurrence of thunderstorms observed by the lightning location system.Preliminary applications to the independent samples for a 6-hour forecast of thunderstorm events show that the prediction correction rate of this model is 78.26%,false alarm rate is 21.74%,and forecasting technical score is 0.61,all better than those from either linear regression or artificial neural network.