Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model
Sprite halos are transient luminous phenomena in the lower ionosphere triggered by tropospheric lightning. The effect of removed charge distributions on sprite halos has not been sufficiently discussed. A three-dimensional (3D) quasi-electrostatic (QES) field model was developed in this paper, inclu...
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| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Atmosphere |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1395 |
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| author | Jinbo Zhang Jiawei Niu Zhibin Xie Yajun Wang Xiaolong Li Qilin Zhang |
| author_facet | Jinbo Zhang Jiawei Niu Zhibin Xie Yajun Wang Xiaolong Li Qilin Zhang |
| author_sort | Jinbo Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Sprite halos are transient luminous phenomena in the lower ionosphere triggered by tropospheric lightning. The effect of removed charge distributions on sprite halos has not been sufficiently discussed. A three-dimensional (3D) quasi-electrostatic (QES) field model was developed in this paper, including the ionospheric nonlinear effect and optical emissions. Simulation results show that, for a total charge of 150 C removed within 1 ms with different spatial distributions, higher altitudes of charge removal lead to stronger electric fields and increase sprite halos’ emission intensities. The non-axisymmetric horizontal distribution of charge affects mesospheric electric fields, and the corresponding scales and intensities of emissions vary with observation orientations. Considering the tilted dipole charge structure due to wind shear, the generated electric field and the corresponding position of sprite halos shift accordingly with the tropospheric removed charge, providing an explanation for the horizontal displacement between sprite halos and the parent lightning. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-bde1298d19ae4f5daecc7877450ea52d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2073-4433 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Atmosphere |
| spelling | doaj-art-bde1298d19ae4f5daecc7877450ea52d2025-08-20T02:26:45ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332024-11-011511139510.3390/atmos15111395Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field ModelJinbo Zhang0Jiawei Niu1Zhibin Xie2Yajun Wang3Xiaolong Li4Qilin Zhang5Ocean College, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaOcean College, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaOcean College, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaOcean College, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaOcean College, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaKey Laboratory of Meteorological Disaster, Ministry of Education (KLME)/Joint International Research Laboratory of Climate and Environment Change (ILCEC)/Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disaster (CIC-FEMD)/Key Laboratory for Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation of China Meteorological Administration, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaSprite halos are transient luminous phenomena in the lower ionosphere triggered by tropospheric lightning. The effect of removed charge distributions on sprite halos has not been sufficiently discussed. A three-dimensional (3D) quasi-electrostatic (QES) field model was developed in this paper, including the ionospheric nonlinear effect and optical emissions. Simulation results show that, for a total charge of 150 C removed within 1 ms with different spatial distributions, higher altitudes of charge removal lead to stronger electric fields and increase sprite halos’ emission intensities. The non-axisymmetric horizontal distribution of charge affects mesospheric electric fields, and the corresponding scales and intensities of emissions vary with observation orientations. Considering the tilted dipole charge structure due to wind shear, the generated electric field and the corresponding position of sprite halos shift accordingly with the tropospheric removed charge, providing an explanation for the horizontal displacement between sprite halos and the parent lightning.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1395sprite halosquasi-electrostatic field modelcharge distributioncharge structureoptical emission |
| spellingShingle | Jinbo Zhang Jiawei Niu Zhibin Xie Yajun Wang Xiaolong Li Qilin Zhang Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model Atmosphere sprite halos quasi-electrostatic field model charge distribution charge structure optical emission |
| title | Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model |
| title_full | Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model |
| title_fullStr | Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model |
| title_full_unstemmed | Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model |
| title_short | Simulated Impacts of Thundercloud Charge Distributions on Sprite Halos Using a 3D Quasi-Electrostatic Field Model |
| title_sort | simulated impacts of thundercloud charge distributions on sprite halos using a 3d quasi electrostatic field model |
| topic | sprite halos quasi-electrostatic field model charge distribution charge structure optical emission |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/11/1395 |
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