Characteristics of lightning in supercells

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the lightning and charge structure observed in supercells; a particular class of severe thunderstorms that are typically responsible for producing the most violent hailstorms and tornadoes. The chapter reviews common supercell features, the classification of supercells based on structural and visual characteristics, as well as the microphysics of supercells related to hail growth and electrification. A summary of observed flash rates, lightning polarity, and charge structure within supercells is also presented, along with descriptions of a few case studies as examples. Specific attention has been given to recent observations of anomalous positive cloud-to-ground lightning and inverted charge structures. Though this behavior is not exclusive to supercells, it has typically been observed in strong and/or severe storms that often meet supercell criteria. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.