In-situ Electrodynamics over Sprite Producing Storms

该奖项支持位于南美洲中部地区的中尺度对流复合体上的四个气球有效载荷的开发和飞行。 在巴西气球发射设施的支持下进行这些飞行的目的是获得与在精灵事件过程中可能产生的Bremstralung X射线有关的测量结果。 这些X射线的检测将确定失控电子在精灵排放发展中的重要性，这是当前模型中的一个基本假设，尚未通过测量得到验证。 额外的气球测量将获得由雷暴活动产生的矢量电场和磁场分布的背景分布的确定。 将通过对雪碧排放物进行高速光学成像来实现雪碧事件的光学记录，该成像将在距离雷暴活动约50至200公里的巴西飞机上飞行。 这些结果将与模型预测的精灵事件进行比较，并根据观测到的风暴的电气特征进行修订。

This award supports the development and flight of four balloon payloads over mesoscale convective complexes located in the central region of South America. The purpose of these flights conducted through the support of the Brazilian balloon launch facilities is to obtain measurements pertaining to the production of Bremstralung X-rays that might be produced in the course of sprite events. Detection of these X-rays would determine the importance of runaway electrons in the development of sprite emissions, a basic assumption in current models that has not been verified through measurements. Additional balloon measurements would acquire a determination of the background distribution of vector electric and magnetic field distribution generated by the thunderstorm activity. Optical documentation of sprite events would be achieved through the application of high speed optical imaging of sprite emissions that would be flown on a Brazilian aircraft that will be located some 50 to 200 kms away from the thunderstorm activity. These results would be compared with model predictions of sprite events as revised to correspond to the electrical characteristics of the storm observed.