Crosses indicate the locations of the eleven stations of the OK-LMA. Accurate three-dimensional locations of lightning channel segments are indicated by the inner red circle. Height errors increase rapidly with range beyond the red circle and details in the vertical lightning structure become obscure. The outer gold circle shows the nominal region where the OK-LMA provides 2-D locations. The blue circle is centered on the KOUN polarimetric radar and indicates the 60km range where the resolution of polarimetric radar data is optimal.

NSSL scientists receive NASA grant to improve lightning observations

NSSL research scientists Don MacGorman and Ted Mansell, along with OU meteorology professor William Beasley were awarded a $1.44 million three-year grant from NASA to improve ground-based lightning observations.

The team of NSSL and University of Oklahoma scientists will work closely with NASA Marshall Spaceflight Center to establish the Center for Lightning Advanced Studies and Safety (CLASS). During the first two years, the center will focus on expanding the Oklahoma Lightning Mapping Array (OK-LMA), a network of eleven stations in central Oklahoma that continuously map the structure of all types of lightning. They will also establish a ground-based network of electric-field meters, which measure electricity in the atmosphere, and install a high-speed lightning imaging capability for recording.

New NASA satellites will observe lightning from space, and together with the ground-based network, will provide a wealth of new data. This will be used to improve weather forecast models and to develop lightning hazard warning techniques.

The grant is from NASA's Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). The proposal was one of 43 submitted to the NASA EPSCoR program; only 23 were funded.