Energetic Radiation Produced During Rocket-Triggered Lightning

Dwyer, J. R.; Uman, M. A.; Rassoul, H. K.; Al‐Dayeh, M.; Caraway, L.; Jerauld, J.; Rakov, Vladimir A.; Jordan, D. M.; Rambo, K. J.; Corbin, V.; Wright, Brian D.

doi:10.1126/science.1078940

Cited by 165 publications

(154 citation statements)

References 13 publications

(13 reference statements)

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“…The field of view of the camera just covered the full gap, including grounded and HV electrodes. The optical gain by a built-in image intensifier was 10 4 . The camera has a black and white CCD; it was not calibrated.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…McCarthy [3] observed x-rays of the order of 10 keV in aircraft flights through thunderstorms in the 1980s. At surface level, x-rays associated with the approaching lightning leader have been detected in triggered lightning measurements [4][5][6]; their energy is of the order of 250 keV. Terrestrial gamma-ray flashes from thunderstorms with energies of up to 20 MeV [7] or even up to 40 MeV [8] are measured from satellites.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Experimental study of hard x-rays emitted from metre-scale positive discharges in air

Kochkin¹,

Nguyen²,

Deursen³

et al. 2012

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

100

138

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We investigate structure and evolution of long positive spark breakdown; and we study at which stage pulses of hard X-rays are emitted. Positive high-voltage pulses of standardized lightning impulse wave form of about 1 MV were applied to about 1 meter of ambient air. The discharge evolution was imaged with a resolution of tens of nanoseconds with an intensified CCD camera. LaBr 3 (Ce + ) scintillation detectors recorded the X-rays emitted during the process. The voltage and the currents on both electrodes were measured synchronously. All measurements indicate that first a large and dense corona of positive streamers emerges from the high voltage electrode. When they approach the grounded electrode, negative counter-streamers emerge there, and the emission of hard X-rays coincides with the connection of the positive streamers with the negative counter-streamers. Leaders are seen to form only at later stages.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental study of hard x-rays emitted from metre-scale positive discharges in air

Kochkin¹,

Nguyen²,

Deursen³

et al. 2012

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

100

138

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…X-ray emissions have been measured successfully over a span of about ten years from triggered lightning and natural lightning in Florida at distances up to about a kilometre from the lightning channel [16][17][18][19]. According to experiments carried out in Gainesville, Florida, the maximum source height of X-rays corresponding to first-stroke stepped leaders and dart-stepped leaders of natural lightning are 800 m and 3.6 km respectively [19].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The emissions occur within about 100 µs before the beginning of the return stroke. Since the dart leader speed is about 10 7 m/s, at the beginning of the X-ray emissions, the tips of dart leaders or dart-stepped leaders are located at a height of about 1 km from the ground [15][16][17].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

X-ray Observations at Gaisberg Tower

et al. 2018

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Abstract:We report the occurrence of X-rays at ground level due to cloud-to-ground flashes of upward-initiated lightning from Gaisberg Tower, in Austria, which is located at an altitude of 1300 m. This is the first observation of X-ray emissions from upward lightning from a tower top located at high altitude. Measurements were carried out using scintillation detectors installed close to the tower top in two phases from 2011 to 2015. X-rays were recorded in three subsequent strokes of three flashes out of the total of 108 flashes recorded in the system during both phases. In contrast to the observations from downward natural or triggered lightning, X-rays were observed only within 10 µs before the subsequent return stroke. This shows that X-rays were emitted when the dart leader was in the vicinity of the tower top, hence during the most intense phase of the dart leader. Both the detected energy and the fluence of X-rays are far lower compared to X-rays from downward natural or rocket-triggered lightning. In addition to the above 108 flashes, an interesting observation of X-rays produced by a nearby downward flash is also presented. The shorter length of dart-leader channels in Gaisberg is suggested as a possible cause of this apparently weaker X-ray production.

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“…Several types of electromagnetic radiation have been observed in relation to atmospheric electric discharges, both natural and artificially triggered (Dwyer et al 2003) lightning, in addition to the above mentioned spherics and the whistlers propagating in the ionosphere and magnetosphere caused by them. Lightning discharges have been observed to be accompanied by radiation in the optical, UV, X rays and even up to the gamma ray energy range and, also in the ELF and ULF radio wave ranges (Simões et al 2008, Bosinger and Shalimov 2008, Mika and Haldoupis 2008.…”

Section: Radiationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physics of Electric Discharges in Atmospheric Gases: An Informal Introduction

2008

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Abstract.A short account of the physics of electrical discharges in gases is given from the viewpoint of its historical evolution and application to planetary atmospheres. As such it serves as an introduction to the papers on particular aspects of electric discharges contained in this issue, in particular in the chapters on lightning and the discharges which in the last two decades have been observed to take place in Earth's upper atmosphere. In addition to briefly reviewing the early history of gas discharge physics we discuss the main parameters affecting atmospheric discharges like collision frequency, mean free path and critical electric field strength. Any discharge current in the atmosphere is clearly carried only by electrons. Above the lower boundary of the mesosphere the electrons must be considered magnetized with the conductivity becoming a tensor. Moreover, the collisional mean free path in the upper atmosphere becomes relatively large which lowers the critical electric field there and more easily enables discharges than at lower altitudes. Finally we briefly mention the importance of such discharges as sources for wave emission.

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Energetic Radiation Produced During Rocket-Triggered Lightning

Cited by 165 publications

References 13 publications

Experimental study of hard x-rays emitted from metre-scale positive discharges in air

Experimental study of hard x-rays emitted from metre-scale positive discharges in air

X-ray Observations at Gaisberg Tower

Physics of Electric Discharges in Atmospheric Gases: An Informal Introduction

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