Premium
Differences in size spectra of electrified storms over land and ocean
Author(s) -
Bang Sarah D.,
Zipser Edward J.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2015gl065264
Subject(s) - tropical cyclone , convection , storm , lightning (connector) , climatology , precipitation , environmental science , meteorology , pacific ocean , atmospheric sciences , geology , oceanography , geography , physics , power (physics) , quantum mechanics
Numerous studies demonstrate the marked difference in intensity of land and ocean convection, the most pronounced being the higher frequency of intense convection and lightning over land. This study contributes to the ongoing debate of the physical reasons for this difference, through the use of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Precipitation Feature (PF) database. We demonstrate that tropical oceanic PFs with lightning tend to be over 10 times larger and more mature than those over land. This relationship is most pronounced in archetypal land and ocean regimes (Congo and Central Pacific) and is also manifested throughout the entire (35°S to 35°N) TRMM domain, to varying extents. This relationship holds true when we select for PFs with 40 dBZ echo tops over at least 5.5 km in height, which continues to be an effective proxy for convective intensity and probability of lightning.