Collaborative Research: Antarctic ELF/VLF Observations of Lightning and Lightning-Induced Electron Precipitation

该奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏和再投资法案》(公法111-5)提供资金的。该提案寻求资金，利用南极大陆上的ELF/VLF(~5赫兹？32千赫)观测资料，定量研究闪电引起的电子沉淀(LEP)。一项协调努力将充分说明北半球发生的个别闪电的特征，同时观察南极相关的ELF/VLF波形。除了增进对ELF/VLF波研究的一般了解外，这些观测还将用于区分耦合到电离层/磁层的闪电能量和耦合到地球-电离层波导的闪电能量。将在南北半球同时进行LEP观测，以便：(1)将向上耦合闪电能量与LEP产生进行定量联系；(2)评估LEP在两个半球发生的条件。佛罗里达州的火箭触发闪电允许直接测量闪电电流，并将为闪电和LEP相关研究工作做出贡献。南极考察站的地理位置非常理想，既可以进行远距离ELF/VLF闪电观测，也可以进行VLF散射观测，以便在共轭区域探测LEP，这是该计划成功所必需的。继续依赖研究生和本科生为这项拟议的研究提供了更广泛的影响，并使这一努力在其教育使命中站稳了脚跟。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The proposal seeks funding to investigate quantitatively the lightning-induced electron precipitation (LEP) using the ELF/VLF (~5 Hz?32 kHz) observations on the Antarctic continent. A coordinated effort will fully characterize individual lightning strokes occurring in the northern hemisphere while simultaneously observing the associated ELF/VLF waveforms in the Antarctic. In addition to advancing knowledge of the ELF/VLF wave studies in general, these observations will be used to differentiate between lightning energy that couples to the ionosphere/magnetosphere and that which couples to the Earth-ionosphere waveguide. Simultaneous observations of LEP will be conducted in the northern and southern hemispheres in order to: (1) quantitatively relate the upward-coupling lightning energy and LEP production, and (2) evaluate the conditions under which LEP occurs in both hemispheres. Rocket-triggered lightning in Florida allow for the direct measurement of lightning currents and will contribute to both the lightning- and LEP-related research efforts. The Antarctic research stations are ideally situated to perform both the long-distance ELF/VLF lightning observations and the VLF scattering observations for LEP detection in the conjugate region, necessary for the success of this program. Continued reliance on graduate and undergraduate students provides a broader impact to this proposed research and firmly grounds this effort in its educational mission.