LDLA

Lightning Detection and Location in the Arctic

15 June 2023 - 15 June 2030

Lead Scientist: Michael McCarthy

Observatory: NSA (North Slope of Alaska)

Research using World-Wide Lightning Location Network data has addressed questions tied to climate and the atmospheric energy budget. Lightning observations in the Arctic are informative about atmospheric vertical mass and energy transport, and the location of the freezing isotherm, since that is where electrification occurs. Thunderstorms also mark localized heavy precipitation and possible fire initiations.

Ground-based observation stations return detailed data but are restricted to a small geographical domain. While covering more geography, space-based remote-sensing observations are limited in time coverage at any location, or latitude- and longitude-restricted spatial coverage. In our case, ground-based very low-frequency lightning networks provide continuous global coverage, although with a higher detection threshold.

Our ongoing technical objective is to site new stations in strategic locations that improve our lightning network reliability and increase its lightning detection efficiency. Low background lightning network stations, located further north than present stations, are expected to increase global lightning detection efficiency. Stations in the north Alaska region can detect radio waves from lightning down to the Equator in all directions. Our scientific focus relates to both real-time lightning effects and the changing global lightning climatology.