Lightning-induced extensive charge sheets provide long range electrostatic thunderstorm detection

Phys Rev Lett. 2013 Jul 26;111(4):045003. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.045003. Epub 2013 Jul 26.

Abstract

By combining electrostatic measurements of lightning-induced electrostatic field changes with radio frequency lightning location, some field changes from exceptionally distant lightning events are apparent which are inconsistent with the usual inverse cube of distance. Furthermore, by using two measurement sites, a transition zone can be identified beyond which the electric field response reverses polarity. For these severe lightning events, we infer a horizontally extensive charge sheet above a thunderstorm, consistent with a mesospheric halo of several hundred kilometers' extent.