[1] Atmospheric noise, originating essentially from lightning discharges, is the main disturbance of VLF/LF telecommunications. This paper characterizes atmospheric noise in the 10-80 kHz range and proposes a new model: very accurate low-frequency noise model (VALERIE). This model uses a new approach, which combines noise measurements with lightning data. The noise statistics were obtained from several years of measurements taken by the Délégation Générale de l'Armement (DGA)/Centre Technique des Systèmes Naval (CTSN) (Toulon, France) and the Space and Naval Warfare Systems (SPAWAR) (San Diego, California). Lightning data were provided by recent satellite observations made by NASA. A comparison of VALERIE predictions with measurements by cross validation showed an increase in accuracy compared to the current International Telecommunication Union (Geneva) model and a decreased average deviation. The model has been validated for the Atlantic area but may be extended as new measurements are collected.