Interaction of Lightning Electromagnetic Pulses and Electrified Thunderclouds with the Ionosphere

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Investigators perform a theoretical study of nonlinear electrodynamic coupling effects of tropospheric thunderstorms to the mesospheric and lower ionospheric regions in (1) intense electromagnetic pulses (EMP), originating in lightning discharges, and (2) long-enduring electrostatic (ES) fields, produced by electrified thunderclouds. Such coupling produces strong modification of conductivity in the mesosphere/lower ionosphere above thunderstorms. Using two and three dimensional electromagnetic models of the lower ionosphere's interaction of lightning EMPs and ES thundercloud fields, radiative transfer models, and D-region chemistry models, they are gaining (1) quantitative information on the spatial extent and temporal dynamics of the mesosphere and lower ionosphere, modified by heating in lightning EMPs and ES thundercloud fields; (2) identification of the dominant sinks in the mesosphere and lower ionosphere for the electromagnetic energy generated by thunderstorms; and (3) quantitative assessment of long-term effects of the EMPs and thundercloud ES fields on the chemical and thermal balance in the mesosphere and ionosphere.