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Fig. 5.29
Network of streamer channels in the microwave ( MW ) streamer subcritical discharge
In contrast to streamer subcritical discharges in the microwave (MW) field,
which form no less complex networks of the filament channels (Fig. 5.29 ), the
streamer subcritical discharge in the quasi-stationary electric field cannot leave
the initiator, scooping from it the electric charge necessary for its development.
However, the streamer heads, also known as the MW streamer discharge, are the
powerful source of the UV radiation.
Thus, the streamer phase of the “sprites” generates the flash of UV radiation,
registered by the equipment of satellites, in particular the satellites “Tatyana-1” and
“Tatyana-2” (Veden'kin et al. 2011 ).
In Fig. 5.30 the spectrum of sprite radiation, registered by the ground detector
(Barrington-Leigh 2000 ), and the spectrum of the MW streamer subcritical dis-
charge, observed under laboratory conditions, are compared.
In the short-wave area, the spectra are essentially similar, which confirms the
similarity of the processes in the streamer channels, in their head part, specifying
their spark nature.
5.5
Conclusion
The slowly increasing charge of the cloud causes polarization in the atmosphere.
Redistribution of charges in the atmosphere neutralizes the field of the cloud. After
lightning discharge, the residual field of the polarization, which relaxes for a long
time, remains.
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