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New World Meteorological Organization Certified Megaflash Lightning Extremes for Flash Distance (709 km) and Duration (16.73 s) Recorded From Space

Journal Article · · Geophysical Research Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2020gl088888· OSTI ID:1671097
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [2];  [5];  [6];  [7];  [8];  [9];  [10]
  1. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
  2. NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), Huntsville, AL (United States)
  3. Texas Tech Univ., Lubbock, TX (United States)
  4. Univ. da São, São Paulo (Brazil)
  5. FMA Research, Fort Collins, CO (United States)
  6. Météorage, Pau (France)
  7. New Mexico Tech, Socorro, NM (United States)
  8. Fudan Univ., Shanghai (China)
  9. Univ. Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona (Spain); Univ. of East Anglia, Norwich (United Kingdom)
  10. Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations
Identification and validation of atmospheric extremes are essential to monitoring climate change, to addressing engineering and safety concerns, and to promoting technological advancement. An international World Meteorological Organization evaluation committee has critically adjudicated and recommended acceptance of two lightning megaflash events (horizontal mesoscale lightning discharges of >100 km in length) as new global extremes using analysis of Geostationary Lightning Mapper data. The world's greatest extent for an individual lightning flash is a single flash that covered a horizontal distance of 709 ± 8 km (441 ± 5 mi) across parts of southern Brazil on 31 October 2018. Furthermore, the greatest duration for a single lightning flash is 16.730 ± 0.002 s from a flash that developed continuously over northern Argentina on 4 March 2019.
Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
Conselho Nacional de Pesquisas Expaciais (CNPq); National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA); National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Grant/Contract Number:
89233218CNA000001
OSTI ID:
1671097
Report Number(s):
LA-UR--20-22429
Journal Information:
Geophysical Research Letters, Journal Name: Geophysical Research Letters Journal Issue: 16 Vol. 47; ISSN 0094-8276
Publisher:
American Geophysical UnionCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
extremes
flash distance
flash duration
lightning
megaflash