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Observations within two regions of charge during initial thunderstorm electrification
Author(s) -
Dye J. E.,
Jones J. J.,
Weinheimer A. J.,
Winn W. P.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
quarterly journal of the royal meteorological society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.744
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1477-870X
pISSN - 0035-9009
DOI - 10.1002/qj.49711448306
Subject(s) - graupel , thunderstorm , electric field , ice crystals , charge (physics) , storm , atmospheric electricity , atmospheric sciences , precipitation , lightning (connector) , environmental science , electric charge , liquid water content , meteorology , physics , cloud computing , power (physics) , quantum mechanics , computer science , operating system
Airborne electric field measurements in two small thunderstorms in New Mexico show the existence of a narrow region of charge in each storm during the early stage of electrification. In one case a net negative region of charge was observed at about 7 km (‐ 12°C) about 1.5 km below the radar cloud top, when the electric field was only 600 V m −1 , and could be accounted for by total charge of −0–01 C with a maximum net space charge density of −0.15 nCm −3 , assuming spherical symmetry. This region of charge was about 500 m across and appears to have been associated with an updraught‐downdraught transition zone. In the other cloud, a region of net positive charge, also about 500m across, was detected at 7.7 km (‐20°C) about 500 m below the radar cloud top, when the electric field was about 2000 Vm −1 . In both regions of charge, supercooled liquid water and ice particles including graupel were present, and ice particle concentrations, sizes, and collision rates were at a relative maximum, suggesting that the charge generation occurred via a precipitation‐based mechanism.