Lightning Detection And Ranging (LDAR II) Network Operation and Analyses Over a Highly Polluted City - Houston, Texas

知识价值：根据该合同，首席研究员（PI）将操作和分析来自德克萨斯州休斯顿周围的12站总闪电探测网络（闪电探测和测距，LDAR II）的数据。美国国家科学基金会在一项重大研究计划（MRI）资助下为LDAR II网络购买设备。先前在休斯顿上空发现了高云对地（CG）闪电密度异常，这引发了许多科学问题。本研究的主要科学目标是利用LDAR II网络和国家闪电探测网络（NLDN）解决关于CG和云内（IC）闪光的许多悬而未决的问题，这些闪光是休斯敦及周边地区发生的总闪电的特征。LDAR二世和数据的结合NLDN将允许π确定1)第一的位置和幅度内闪电风暴,2)云闪率,3)云地闪电速度,4)的进化云/ CG flash比率,5)云放电通道的几何程度6)云计算和CG闪光的起始点,7)的高度主要费用降低,8)的面积和体积电荷被闪电,改变9)电脉冲的极性，10)电脉冲峰值电流的估计，以及11)测量雷暴中电脉冲的多重电脉冲。研究的更广泛影响：来自LDAR II的数据将对在本奖项范围之外进行研究的科学家和学生的研究项目产生直接影响。目前，已有十多个合作机构对这个项目和有关资料表示了兴趣。该网络的持续运行将为休斯敦提供仪器仪表，并加强了解和预报天气的基础设施，休斯敦是美国人口第四大城市。此外，公众可以通过以下网站免费获得实验性的LDAR II实时闪电显示器：http://www.met.tamu.edu/ciams/ldar/index.html。非正式报告显示，这是休斯顿社区一个受欢迎的免费网站。这项研究将有助于几名研究生的教育，他们将直接参与研究，包括他们在数据采集和分析方面的分享。研究成果将纳入云物理和中尺度现象的高级课程。最后，本研究将利用德克萨斯农工大学正在进行的推广和教育项目，对本科生和高中生进行指导，并特别努力让代表性不足的学生参与其中。

Intellectual Merit: Under this award the Principal Investigator (PI) will operate and analyze data from a twelve-station total lightning detection network (Lightning Detection and Ranging, LDAR II) around Houston, Texas. The National Science Foundation under a Major Research Initiative (MRI) grant funded the purchase of the equipment for the LDAR II network. A high cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning density anomaly had been previously identified over Houston, which raised a number of scientific questions. The primary scientific goal of this research is to address many outstanding questions about CG and intracloud (IC) flashes that characterize the total lightning occurring over Houston and the surrounding areas using the LDAR II network and the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN). The combination of data from the LDAR II and the NLDN will allow the PI to determine 1) the location and amplitude of the first lightning flash within storms, 2) cloud flash rates, 3) cloud-to-ground flash rates, 4) the evolution of cloud/CG flash ratios, 5) the geometric extent of cloud discharge channels, 6) the initiation points of cloud and CG flashes, 7) the altitude from which the primary charge is lowered, 8) the area and volume in which charge is altered by lightning, 9) the polarity of CG strokes, 10) estimates of the peak currents in CG strokes, and 11) measurements of the multiplicity of strokes in CG flashes in the thunderstorms. Broader impacts of the research: Data from the LDAR II will have an immediate impact on the research programs of scientists and students who are performing research outside the bounds of this award. At the moment, more than ten cooperating institutions have expressed an interest in this project and the associated information. The continuing operation of the network will provide instrumentation and enhance the infrastructure of understanding and forecasting weather in Houston, the fourth largest city in population in the United States. In addition, general public access to the experimental LDAR II real-time lightning displays is provided at no cost through the following web site: http://www.met.tamu.edu/ciams/ldar/index.html. Informal reports suggest that this is a popular free web site for the Houston community. This research will contribute to the education of several graduate students who will directly participate in the research, which will include their sharing in data acquisition and analysis. Research results will be incorporated into advanced courses on cloud physics and mesoscale phenomena. Finally, this research will take advantage of ongoing outreach and educational Texas A&M University programs to engage in mentorship of undergraduate and high school students with special effort to involve under-represented students.