Cosmic Rays Could Reveal Secrets of Lightning On Earth

sciencehabit writes: Despite Benjamin Franklin's best efforts with a kite and a key, the phenomenon of lightning remains a scientific enigma. Now, researchers have developed a new tool that could help them solve some of lightning's mysteries. By using cosmic rays, space-traveling particles that constantly rain down on our atmosphere, scientists report they can peek inside thunderstorms and measure their electric fields, helping them pinpoint the conditions that cause storms' electrical outbursts. The advance could help researchers predict more precisely when and where lightning is most likely to strike and get people out of harm's way in time.

Comments

Re:solved problem

[Anonymous Coward]

Shortsighted. The long term goal is of course a weather modification net that can moderate severe weather, distribute rain to make up for global warming and ease drought conditions, etc. In order to do that you have to fully understand weather. You don't just need to know enough to go in out of the rain. You need to understand causes in order to be able to produce / reduce / redirect, etc. weather.

Re:image lightning? you mean seed lightning

[Neil Boekend]

Hardly. The field strength between thunder clouds and the earth alone is not enough for lightning.
Yes there are a million volts present. No that is not enough to arc over 1,5 km (1 mile) (distance bottom of an average thunder cloud to the ground). It is approximately enough for 100 meters (1/15th of the required distance) according to the 1 kV/cm rule of thumb.
Current theory states that high speed cosmic particles ionize the air so the lightning can arc.

Re:image lightning? you mean seed lightning

[DigiShaman]

Then explain lightning from the ground-up? I'll include the following quote form nssl.noaa.gov

Q: Does lightning strike from the sky down, or the ground up?
A: The answer is both. Cloud-to-ground lightning comes from the sky down, but the part you see comes from the ground up. A typical cloud-to-ground flash lowers a path of negative electricity (that we cannot see) towards the ground in a series of spurts. Objects on the ground generally have a positive charge. Since opposites attract, an upward streamer is sent out from the object about to be struck. When these two paths meet, a return stroke zips back up to the sky. It is the return stroke that produces the visible flash, but it all happens so fast - in about one-millionth of a second - so the human eye doesn't see the actual formation of the stroke.

Re:image lightning? you mean seed lightning

[PPH]

Current theory states that high speed cosmic particles ionize the air so the lightning can arc.

Seems plausible. The Pacific DC Intertie operates at 1 MV line to line (500 kV line to ground). This is a greater field strength than cloud to ground lightning, but it doesn't flash over (nearly as often). So lightning must depend on some property or phenomena that occurs at higher altitudes, but not at or near ground level.

P.S. Extra points for that 'current theory' pun.