“…In discharges [ Garscadden and Nagpal , 1995; Guerra et al , 2004] and in afterglows [ Piper , 1989, 1992], the number density of N 2 (X 1 Σ g + , ν ≥ 5) species (shown for times of ∼10 ms) can reach, and even exceed, values of 10 −2 × [N 2 ]. In such a case the deduced energy transfer from O 2 (a 1 Δ g ) to N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) [ Kamaratos , 1997, 2006, 2009] might also play some indirect role in the formation of N 2 (B 3 Π g ) via the {N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) + N 2 (X 1 Σ g + , ν ≥ 5) → N 2 (B 3 Π g ) + N 2 (X 1 Σ g + , ν ′ < ν )} reaction. The energy transfer from O 2 (a 1 Δ g ) to N 2 (A 3 Σ u + ) may also play some role in the formation of N 2 (C 3 Π u ) [ Kamaratos , 2005, 2009] in the afterglow stage in the simulation model of a sprite streamer [ Sentman et al , 2008].…”