The Physical and Meteorological Characteristics Associated with Lightning Flashes

小行星9806189 我们授予NSF ATM-92 13787的三年延续使用来自国家闪电探测网络（NLDN）的数据与雷达和卫星观测的支持信息。有两个部分，我们将同时进行拟议的研究。首先，我们建议继续研究与云地闪电有关的物理和气象条件。这将包括对以下领域的持续分析：a）美国的NLDN闪电记录，包括峰值电流、极性和多样性及其随季节、月与月、风暴与风暴以及风暴内的变化，B）对德克萨斯州中尺度对流复合体中的闪电的研究，c）活动闪电日的预测，冬季闪电的特征。其次，我们将调查NLDN的可靠性，确定背后的原因增加的正闪光计数和降低的年平均峰值电流在云到地闪。我们将使用最近安装的高级闪电方向探测器和布鲁克波形数字化记录系统来获得德克萨斯A M大学几百公里范围内的闪电波形。我们建议，还，测量NLDN的检测效率在学院站，得克萨斯州。 这项研究将有助于教育的几个研究生谁将直接参与拟议的研究，其中包括他们的数据采集和分析共享。该提案包括对研究生的支持，他们将撰写论文和学位论文，并在研讨会和专业会议上展示他们的成果，并撰写描述他们研究的手稿。研究成果将纳入云物理学和中尺度现象高级课程。本科生将参与气象，电气工程和计算机科学系。

9806189 Orville We grant a three-year continuation of NSF ATM-92 13787 using data from the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) with supporting information from radar and satellite observations. There are two parts to the proposed research that we will simultaneously pursue. First, we propose to continue our investigations into the physical and meteorological conditions associated with cloud-to-ground lightning flashes. This will include continued analysis in the following areas, a) NLDN lightning records in the United States, to include peak currents, polarity, and multiplicity and their variation from year to year, with seasons, from month to month, from storm to storm, and within storms, b) research on the lightning in mesoscale convective complexes in Texas, c) the forecasting of active lightning days, and d) the characteristics of winter lightning. Second, we will investigate the NLDN reliability by determining the reasons behind the increased positive flash counts and lowering of the annual mean peak current in cloud-to-ground flashes. We will do this by using a recently installed Advanced Lightning Direction Finder and a Brook waveform digitizing recording system to obtain waveforms on lightning within a few hundred kilometers of Texas A&M University. We propose, also, to measure the detection efficiency of the NLDN at College Station, Texas. This research will contribute to the education of several graduate students who will directly participate in the proposed research, which will include their sharing in data acquisition and analysis. Included in this proposal is support for graduate students who will write theses and dissertations and present their results at seminars and professional meetings, and write manuscripts describing their research. Research results will be incorporated into advanced courses on cloud physics and mesoscale phenomena. Undergraduates will be involved from the Departments of Meteorology, Electrical Engineering, and Computer Science.