Space and ground-based measurements of negative cloud-to-ground strokes with and without significant continuing currents

Journal Article · 05 February 2025 · Atmospheric Research

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.107971 · OSTI ID:2512421

Mark, Megan D. ^[1]; Nag, Amitabh  ^[1]; Cummins, Kenneth L. ^[2]; Plaisir, Mathieu N. ^[2]; Goldberg, Dylan J. ^[2]; Bitzer, Phillip M. ^[3]; Imam, Abdullah Y. ^[2]; Rassoul, Hamid K. ^[2]

---

1. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL (United States)
2. Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL (United States)
3. Univ. of Alabama, Huntsville, AL (United States)

We examined the responses of the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) onboard the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-16 (GOES-16) to 174 negative cloud-to-ground (CG) return strokes in 77 flashes that occurred in Florida in 2018–2023. We recorded these strokes on high-speed video cameras from which we measured the continuing current durations. The GLM flash and stroke detection efficiencies were 80.5 and 50%, respectively. The nighttime stroke detection efficiency was 2.4 times higher than that during the daytime (81.3 versus 33.9%, receptively). The detection efficiencies for first strokes and single-stroke flashes were 31.3 and 30%, respectively, which were lower than that for subsequent strokes (61.7%). The GLM stroke detection efficiency did not depend upon the return stroke peak current reported by the U.S. National Lightning Detection Network, but it was significantly higher (64.9 versus 37.5%) for strokes with significant (>3 ms) continuing current durations versus those without (<3 ms) such currents. Continuing current durations estimated from the GLM data were significantly underestimated and were unrelated to those measured from video camera records; none of the GLM-derived continuing current durations exceeded 6 ms, while those obtained from video camera records ranged from 0.28 to 685 ms. GLM Level 0 versus Level 2 data comparison indicates that onboard and ground processing techniques applied for noise removal may be responsible for continuing current duration underestimation and reduced first-stroke detection efficiency, respectively.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
• Grant/Contract Number: 89233218CNA000001
• OSTI ID: 2512421
• Report Number(s): LA-UR--24-31370
• Journal Information: Atmospheric Research, Journal Name: Atmospheric Research Vol. 317; ISSN 0169-8095
• Publisher: ElsevierCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English