What Is ‘Hot Lightning’? Satellites Reveal Which Strikes Are Most Likely to Start Wildfires

IEEE Spectrum  August 2, 2019
The U.S. National Lightning Detection Network keeps a record of virtually all lightning that strikes the ground anywhere in the United States. That network is maintained by Helsinki-based Vaisala. The company researchers plan to combine all the data available to them to pinpoint exactly which flashes pose the greatest threat. Lightning that harbors a continuing current is more likely to start fires and damage homes or equipment. A continuing current is not as powerful as the flash itself. While a flash might have a peak current of 20,000 amps (averaged from the multiple composite strokes that make up a single flash), a continuing current measures between 100 to 1,000 amps. But a continuing current lasts much longer—which makes it a highly effective fire starter. Global lightning detection network can pinpoint the location of any cloud-to-ground lightning strike in the world to within 2 kilometers. For its U.S. network, that accuracy improves to within 200 meters…read more.

This stroke density map shows where lightning was most common over a four-year period. It’s based on data collected by Vaisala’s global lightning detection network, called Global Lightning Dataset 360. Credit: Illustration: Vaisala

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