On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds
Abstract The relationship of lightning and elementary particle fluxes in the thunderclouds is not fully understood to date. Using the particle beams (the so-called Thunderstorm Ground Enhancements – TGEs) as a probe we investigate the characteristics of the interrelated atmospheric processes. The we...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2017-05-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-01288-0 |
| _version_ | 1818843338506240000 |
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| author | Ashot Chilingarian Suren Chilingaryan Tigran Karapetyan Lev Kozliner Yeghia Khanikyants Gagik Hovsepyan David Pokhsraryan Suren Soghomonyan |
| author_facet | Ashot Chilingarian Suren Chilingaryan Tigran Karapetyan Lev Kozliner Yeghia Khanikyants Gagik Hovsepyan David Pokhsraryan Suren Soghomonyan |
| author_sort | Ashot Chilingarian |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The relationship of lightning and elementary particle fluxes in the thunderclouds is not fully understood to date. Using the particle beams (the so-called Thunderstorm Ground Enhancements – TGEs) as a probe we investigate the characteristics of the interrelated atmospheric processes. The well-known effect of the TGE dynamics is the abrupt termination of the particle flux by the lightning flash. With new precise electronics, we can see that particle flux decline occurred simultaneously with the rearranging of the charge centers in the cloud. The analysis of the TGE energy spectra before and after the lightning demonstrates that the high-energy part of the TGE energy spectra disappeared just after lightning. The decline of particle flux coincides on millisecond time scale with first atmospheric discharges and we can conclude that Relativistic Runaway Electron Avalanches (RREA) in the thundercloud assist initiation of the negative cloud to ground lightning. Thus, RREA can provide enough ionization to play a significant role in the unleashing of the lightning flash. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:56:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a6221b9e01ba4d85bd286a057639a37a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T04:56:17Z |
| publishDate | 2017-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-a6221b9e01ba4d85bd286a057639a37a2022-12-21T20:35:13ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222017-05-017111010.1038/s41598-017-01288-0On the initiation of lightning in thundercloudsAshot Chilingarian0Suren Chilingaryan1Tigran Karapetyan2Lev Kozliner3Yeghia Khanikyants4Gagik Hovsepyan5David Pokhsraryan6Suren Soghomonyan7Yerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersYerevan Physics Institute, 2 Alikhanyan BrothersAbstract The relationship of lightning and elementary particle fluxes in the thunderclouds is not fully understood to date. Using the particle beams (the so-called Thunderstorm Ground Enhancements – TGEs) as a probe we investigate the characteristics of the interrelated atmospheric processes. The well-known effect of the TGE dynamics is the abrupt termination of the particle flux by the lightning flash. With new precise electronics, we can see that particle flux decline occurred simultaneously with the rearranging of the charge centers in the cloud. The analysis of the TGE energy spectra before and after the lightning demonstrates that the high-energy part of the TGE energy spectra disappeared just after lightning. The decline of particle flux coincides on millisecond time scale with first atmospheric discharges and we can conclude that Relativistic Runaway Electron Avalanches (RREA) in the thundercloud assist initiation of the negative cloud to ground lightning. Thus, RREA can provide enough ionization to play a significant role in the unleashing of the lightning flash.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-01288-0 |
| spellingShingle | Ashot Chilingarian Suren Chilingaryan Tigran Karapetyan Lev Kozliner Yeghia Khanikyants Gagik Hovsepyan David Pokhsraryan Suren Soghomonyan On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds Scientific Reports |
| title | On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| title_full | On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| title_fullStr | On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| title_full_unstemmed | On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| title_short | On the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| title_sort | on the initiation of lightning in thunderclouds |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-01288-0 |
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