A study of the time interval between return strokes and K-changes of negative cloud-to-ground lightning flashes in Brazil

Abstract This paper presents the results about the time interval between return strokes and K-changes of negative cloud-to-ground lightning flashes in Brazil based on millisecond scale observations of electric field waveforms. They were obtained in Sao Jose dos Campos (45.864° W , 23.215° S ) , Brazil, in the period from October 1998 to February 1999. It was found that the interstroke time interval has an average value of 69.0 ms , a geometric mean value of 49.6 ms and does not depend on the return stroke order. The time interval between K-changes has an average value of 18.5 ms , a geometric mean value of 12.0 ms , and also does not depend on the return stroke order in which they occur between. These values are in reasonable agreement with the values obtained in other regions of the world.

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