HR: 1330h
AN: AE32A-0165    [PDF]
TI: Overview of the Year-One Field Program Phase of the Thunderstorm Electrification and Lightning Experiment (TELEX) 2003
AU: * Rust, D
EM: dave.rust@noaa.gov
AF: NOAA/National Severe Storms Laboratory, 1313 Halley Cir, Norman, OK 73069 United States
AU: MacGorman, D
AF: NOAA/National Severe Storms Laboratory, 1313 Halley Cir, Norman, OK 73069 United States
AU: Schuur, T
AF: University of Oklahoma/Cooperative Institure for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies, 1313 Halley Cir, Norman, OK 73069
AU: Straka, J
AF: University of Oklahoma/School of Meteorology, Sarkey Energy Center, Norman, OK 73029 United States
AU: Rison, B
AF: New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 801 LeRoy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 United States
AU: Hamlin, T
AF: New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 801 LeRoy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 United States
AU: Krehbiel, P
AF: New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 801 LeRoy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 United States
AU: Bruning, E
AF: University of Oklahoma/Cooperative Institure for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies, 1313 Halley Cir, Norman, OK 73069
AB: Recent research has raised several issues that have significant implications for understanding storm electrification and lightning. The scientific purpose of TELEX is to test and revise hypotheses concerning the inter-relationships among the wind field, microphysical characteristics, electrical structure, and lightning of isolated severe storms and of large storm systems (called mesoscale convective systems, MCSs). We conducted the first-year's field program of TELEX in central Oklahoma, 11 May-6 June. This was the initial spring field deployment for several new observing systems operating in central Oklahoma: a 10-cm wavelength polarimetric Doppler radar, a lightning mapping array (LMA), and a new mobile lab for storm intercept and coordination of mobile ballooning of electric field meters and data acquisition. Also, the electric field meter was substantially upgraded (both mechanically and electronically) to provide higher resolution data, including more accurate determination of instrument orientation using a three-axis flux gate magnetometer arrangement and a two-axis accelerometer. The improvements allow more accurate determination of the electric field vector, and thus inferred charge structure, in context of the three-dimensional structures of storm parameters and lightning. Presented in this paper are examples from among the seven storm-intercept missions during which fourteen balloon soundings were obtained with instrumented balloons carrying a radiosonde and electric field meter. Owing to a scarcity of isolated deep convection in the target area during the program, the flights are mostly from nighttime multicellular storms and MCSs. Electric fields ranging above 100 kV/m were measured.
DE: 3304 Atmospheric electricity
DE: 3324 Lightning
DE: 3329 Mesoscale meteorology
DE: 3354 Precipitation (1854)
DE: 3394 Instruments and techniques
SC: Atmospheric and Space Electricity [AE]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting