Global Properties of Sprites Observed over the Sea of Japan and the
Pacific Ocean between 2016 and 2021
- M Duan,
- T Sakamoto,
- T Enoto,
- Y Wada,
- M Kamogawa,
- K Ito,
- T Miyoshi,
- T Sekiguchi,
- C Shimoda,
- H Kawakami
T Enoto
Extreme Natural Phenomena RIKEN Hakubi Research Team
Author ProfileT Miyoshi
Sambommatsu High School, Higashikagawa City, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan
Author ProfileC Shimoda
The Nippon Meteor Society / Japan Fireball Network
Author ProfileAbstract
Sprites are an atmospheric event that until now has been studied with a
limited number of events as data points. We investigated the global
characteristics to further understand the interactions between sprites
and thunderclouds that coincide with them. We analyzed the frequency
distribution, morphology, location, and altitude of 525 sprites observed
by the cameras located at Sagamihara, Japan, from December 2016 to March
2021. The majority of sprites were observed during winter. The column
type sprites commonly occurred during winter. In contrast, sprites with
complex morphologies are frequently observed in summer. Using the
triangulation of simultaneously observed sprites at multiple locations,
the average height of sprites was determined to be 81.6 km, and one
instance occurred where the sprites horizontally spread in a range of
tens of kilometers. For sprites of triangulation, precipitation maps by
radar observations were made, and the location of lightning was
investigated. We also investigated the correlation of the sprites to the
gamma-ray emissions associated to thunderclouds.