Collaborative Research: Quantifying the Global Electric Circuit by Data Mining of Electric Field and Radar Observations from Ground Based, Airborne and Satellite Platforms

合作研究：通过地面、机载和卫星平台的电场和雷达观测数据挖掘来量化全球电​​路

• 批准号: 2328464
• 负责人: Wiebke Deierling
• 金额: $ 13.9万
• 依托单位: Colorado State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-02-01 至 2025-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2328464&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Quantifying; Global; Electric

The Global Electric Circuit (GEC) refers to the continuous movement of atmospheric electricity between the lower atmosphere, ionosphere and magnetosphere, principally driven by lightning. The work that will be conducted under this award will address several unknown or uncertain aspects of the GEC. The importance of the GEC to society is that electric currents in the atmosphere have impacts on communication and aircraft navigation. The project also includes significant training opportunities for the next generation of scientists at a Minority Serving Institution.The goal of this project is to reduce uncertainties in two major components of the Global Electric Circuit; the upward current from electrified clouds and the downward fair-weather current. To quantify the upward current the research team will examine electric field observations above clouds that were collected from field campaigns over the past three decades, and derive a relationship between those observations and remote sensing measurements such as from the TRMM and GPM satellite missions. Downward fair-weather current would be quantified through electric field observations in Alaska, Colorado, and Texas, with a focus on refining the definition and uncertainties of fair-weather conditions using cloud and aerosol data. Six specific science questions are posed:• Q#1: In the spectrum of electrified clouds, is it possible to separate the more important clouds having large contributions to the GEC from those that can be neglected, based on properties seen from radar, microwave radiometers, or other satellite-based measurements? What types of electrified clouds supply significant electric current to the GEC? • Q#2: What is the role of electrified extratropical synoptic systems in the GEC, especially from those with freezing rain and thundersnow? Can their fractional contribution to the GEC be quantified?• Q#3: Can the estimated current be refined based on the vertical and horizontal structures of the electrified clouds from measurements of radar, passive microwave radiometers, or other satellite-based measurements? • Q#4: What are the regional, seasonal, and diurnal distributions of the various thunderstorms and electrified shower clouds (ESCs) and their Wilson current contributions to the GEC?• Q#5: Can the understanding of local influences to surface electric field be improved by using a collection of observations of cloud and aerosols in northern Alaska, and the differences in the diurnal variations of electric fields obtained at other stations? • Q#6: How would thunderstorms and ESCs in the Arctic vary under a warming climate? How is the local electric field related to the variations of cloud systems in northern Alaska?This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

全球电路（GEC）是指大气电在低层大气、电离层和磁层之间的连续运动，主要由闪电驱动。 根据该奖项进行的工作将解决GEC的几个未知或不确定的方面。 GEC对社会的重要性在于大气中的电流对通信和飞机导航有影响。 该项目还包括在一个少数群体服务机构为下一代科学家提供重要培训机会，其目标是减少全球电路两个主要组成部分的不确定性，即带电云的上行电流和晴天下行电流。 为了量化上升流，研究小组将研究过去三十年来从实地活动中收集的云层上方的电场观测结果，并得出这些观测结果与TRMM和GPM卫星任务等遥感测量结果之间的关系。 将通过在阿拉斯加、科罗拉多和得克萨斯的电场观测来量化向下的晴天电流，重点是利用云和气溶胶数据来完善晴天条件的定义和不确定性。 提出了六个具体的科学问题：· Q#1：在带电云的光谱中，是否有可能根据雷达、微波辐射计或其他卫星测量的特性，将对GEC有较大贡献的更重要的云与那些可以忽略的云分开？什么类型的带电云为GEC提供大量电流？问题2：带电的热带外天气系统在GEC中的作用是什么，特别是那些有冻雨和雷暴雪的天气系统？它们对GEC的贡献率是否可以量化？·问题三：根据雷达、无源微波辐射计或其他卫星测量的带电云的垂直和水平结构，是否可以精确估计电流？·问题4：各种雷暴和带电阵雨云（ESC）的区域性、季节性和日分布以及它们对GEC的威尔逊电流贡献是什么？·问题五：通过使用阿拉斯加北方云和气溶胶的观测数据以及其他台站获得的电场日变化差异，能否提高对地面电场局部影响的理解？问题6：在气候变暖的情况下，北极的雷暴和ESC会如何变化？在阿拉斯加北方，当地电场与云系的变化有什么关系？该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。