Leader modeling of gigantic jets connecting thunderclouds to the ionosphere

Lizhu Tong (1) , Kenichi Nanbu (1) , Hiroshi Fukunishi (2)

1 Institute of Fluid Science
2 Department of Geophysics

A randomly stepped leader propagation model is developed to study gigantic jets, a new type of lightning, connecting thunderclouds to the ionosphere. The thundercloud is considered as an electrode igniting gigantic jets and the ionosphere is assumed as the other. The propagation of stepped leader is considered as a field controlled random growth process. The electric field is considered due to the thundercloud charges and the self-consistently propagating leader. A leader propagation probability is proposed to determine if the leader grows at next step and to choose the step direction of the leader in case of growth. The results show that leader propagation spans ~72 km from igniting position to the ionosphere. The simulation of leader propagation appears to be in agreement with the structure of observed gigantic jets.

Mots clés: Lightning; gigantic jet; leader modeling; thundercloud; ionosphere

Domaines: Géophysique [physics.geo-ph]

Lizhu Tong, Kenichi Nanbu, Hiroshi Fukunishi. Leader modeling of gigantic jets connecting thunderclouds to the ionosphere. 2004. ⟨hal-00001934⟩