Lightning location and Application

Laboratory

Accessing lightning data

• LIS and STARNET

LIS

• Access • http://thunder.msfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/LISSearch.pl?type=HTML?

Select the Position

Select the area and period – Maximum 12 months

Click to download the data

STARNET

• htpp://www.starnet.iag.usp.br

• Register to get password

Data link

Use of Field Mill

• Understanding the Thunderstorm structure

• Thunderstorm approximation and

• Lightning activity

Santa Maria - Campaign

Lets simulate the Ez

• cd Desktop/TNOTE-Rayos• cd E-Field• ./profiler_lin64• You can edit the file parametros.dat to modify the position of the charge centers and check

how Ez changes with distance• Try to see if you can find a configuration that resembles

the previous image.• This exercise will provide a hint to interpret electrical field

measurements, because it will be possible to know if a thunderstorm is approaching and if it is severe or not.

Lightning signatures in Radars

• Cross-Sections

Examples:

Argentina – 18 November of 2009

São Paulo – 12 March of 2012

Play with the cross sections

• Mainly try to find differences in the radar reflectivity profiles with and without lightning.

Run ./profiler_lin64

Argentina cd Desktop/TNOTE-Rayos/Radar_STARNET

São Paulo

cd Desktop/TNOTE-Rayos/CTH_LMA

• Try to go to the storms and make cross sections where you have lightning and not.

• Compare the cross section to find signatures on Z (value and height) that is associated with Lightning activity.

• This will help you to forecast if a lightning is possible and depending on the signature you might even have hail.