Seasonal variations in the lightning diurnal cycle and implications for the global electric circuit

Abstract Data obtained from the Optical Transient Detector and the Lightning Imaging Sensor satellites (70° and 35° inclination low earth orbits, respectively) are used to statistically determine the number of flashes in the seasonal diurnal cycle as a function of local and universal time. These data include corrections for detection efficiency and instrument view time. They are further subdivided by season, land versus ocean, and other spatial (e.g., continents) and temporal (e.g., time of peak diurnal amplitude) categories. These statistics are then combined with analyses of high altitude aircraft observations of electrified clouds to produce the seasonal diurnal variation in the global electric circuit. Continental results display strong diurnal variation, with a lightning peak in the late afternoon and a minimum in late morning. In geographical regions dominated by large mesoscale convective systems, the peak in the diurnal curve shifts toward late evening or early morning hours. The maximum seasonal diurnal flash rate occurs in June–August, corresponding to the Northern Hemisphere summer, while the minimum occurs in December–February. Summer lightning dominates over winter activity and springtime lightning dominates over fall activity at most continental locations. Oceanic lightning exhibits minimal diurnal variation, but morning hours are slightly enhanced over afternoon. As was found earlier, for the annual diurnal variation, using basic assumptions about the mean storm currents as a function of flash rate and location (i.e., land/ocean), our seasonal estimates of the current in the global electric circuit provide an excellent match with independent measurements of the seasonal Carnegie curve diurnal variations. The maximum (minimum) total mean current of 2.4 kA (1.7 kA) is found during Northern Hemisphere summer (winter). Land thunderstorms supply about one half (52%) of the total global current. Ocean thunderstorms contribute about one third (31%) and the non-lightning producing ocean electrified shower clouds (ESCs) supply one sixth (15%) of the total global current. Land ESCs make only a small contribution (2%).

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