SUMMARYCollisions between vapour-grown ice crystals and a riming target, representing a graupel pellet falling in a thunderstorm, were shown by Reynolds, Brook and Gourley to transfer substantial charge, which they showed to be adequate to account for the development of charge centres leading to lightning in thunderstorms. Related experiments by Takahashi and Jayaratne et al. determined that the sign of charge transferred is dependent on the cloud liquid water content and on cloud temperature. There are marked differences between the results of Takahashi and Jayaratne in the details of the dependence they noted of the sign of graupel charging on cloud water and temperature. More recently, Pereyra et al. have shown that results somewhat similar in form to those of Takahashi are obtained by modifying the experimental technique used to prepare the clouds of ice crystals and supercooled water droplets used in the experiments.In order to help resolve the reason for the differences in charge transfer results in various studies, work has continued in the Manchester laboratory with a modified cloud chamber in which the cloud conditions of the crystals and droplets may be controlled independently. Results indicate a profound effect on the charge sign of the particle growth conditions in the two clouds involved. For example, by suitable adjustments to the water contents of the two clouds, graupel is charged negatively by rebounding ice crystal collisions at higher cloud water contents than have been noted previously. It is suggested that the most important influence on charge sign is the relative diffusional growth rate of the two ice surfaces at the moment of impact and that this is affected by an increase in cloud supersaturation experienced by the ice crystals during the cloud mixing process just prior to collision. A range of cloud conditions is used in the present work in order to help determine the reasons for the various results reported previously.Examination of some thunderstorm observations in the context of the present results points to the importance of mixing on the sign of the charge transferred during particle collisions when two cloud regions of different histories mix together.

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A World Meteorological Organization weather and climate extremes committee has judged that the world’s longest reported distance for a single lightning flash occurred with a horizontal distance of 321 km (199.5 mi) over Oklahoma in 2007, while the world’s longest reported duration for a single lightning flash is an event that lasted continuously for 7.74 s over southern France in 2012. In addition, the committee has unanimously recommended amendment of the AMS Glossary of Meteorology definition of lightning discharge as a “series of electrical processes taking place within 1 s” by removing the phrase “within 1 s” and replacing it with “continuously.” Validation of these new world extremes 1) demonstrates the recent and ongoing dramatic augmentations and improvements to regional lightning detection and measurement networks, 2) provides reinforcement regarding the dangers of lightning, and 3) provides new information for lightning engineering concerns.

During November 2018–April 2019, an 11-station very high frequency (VHF) Lightning Mapping Array (LMA) was deployed to Córdoba Province, Argentina. The purpose of the LMA was validation of the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), but the deployment was coordinated with two field campaigns. The LMA observed 2.9 million flashes (≥ five sources) during 163 days, and level-1 (VHF locations), level-2 (flashes classified), and level-3 (gridded products) datasets have been made public. The network’s performance allows scientifically useful analysis within 100 km when at least seven stations were active. Careful analysis beyond 100 km is also possible. The LMA dataset includes many examples of intense storms with extremely high flash rates (>1 s−1), electrical discharges in overshooting tops (OTs), as well as anomalously charged thunderstorms with low-altitude lightning. The modal flash altitude was 10 km, but many flashes occurred at very high altitude (15–20 km). There were also anomalous and stratiform flashes near 5–7 km in altitude. Most flashes were small (<50 km2 area). Comparisons with GLM on 14 and 20 December 2018 indicated that GLM most successfully detected larger flashes (i.e., more than 100 VHF sources), with detection efficiency (DE) up to 90%. However, GLM DE was reduced for flashes that were smaller or that occurred lower in the cloud (e.g., near 6-km altitude). GLM DE also was reduced during a period of OT electrical discharges. Overall, GLM DE was a strong function of thunderstorm evolution and the dominant characteristics of the lightning it produced.