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Decadal Analysis of Lightning Activity of ’Relámpago del Catatumbo’ (2014-2023)
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  • Daiana Baissac,
  • Rodrigo Bürgesser,
  • María Gabriela Nicora,
  • Maria Florencia Barle,
  • Constanza Inés Villagrán Asiares,
  • Yasmin Romina Velazquez,
  • Lucia Pini,
  • Eldo Edgardo Avila
Daiana Baissac
CEILAP, UNIDEF (MINDEF - CONICET)
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Rodrigo Bürgesser
Universidad Nacional de Cordoba - IFEG CONICET
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María Gabriela Nicora
Unidad de Investigacion y Desarrollo Estrategicos para la Defensa Departamento de Investigaciones en Laseres y sus Aplicaciones
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Maria Florencia Barle
CEILAP, UNIDEF (MINDEF - CONICET)
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Constanza Inés Villagrán Asiares
CEILAP, UNIDEF (MINDEF - CONICET)
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Yasmin Romina Velazquez
CEILAP, UNIDEF (MINDEF - CONICET)
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Lucia Pini
CEILAP, UNIDEF (MINDEF - CONICET)
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Eldo Edgardo Avila
Universidad Nacional de Cordoba - IFEG CONICET

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Abstract

The ”Relámpago del Catatumbo” is a unique phenomenon that occurs over Lake Maracaibo, where the most intense lightning activity on the planet takes place. In this work, we extend the study of lightning activity in Lake Maracaibo and its surroundings by a decade, evaluating the period from 2014 to 2023. The results show that the hourly distributions of lightning activity are correlated with the variations of deep convective events in the region; while, the seasonal variations in lightning strikes are correlated with the monthly variations in the mean water temperature of Lake Maracaibo. These findings suggest that the Lake may be providing the necessary water vapor for the development of storm systems that form in the region. It was found that the diurnal and monthly variations of the lightning activity have not changed substantially over the years, as these variations are, with a high degree of significance, very similar to those found in the period 2005-2010 by Bürgesser et al. (2012). The analysis of the interannual variations in lightning strikes for the period does not show any indication of a systematic increase or decrease in lightning activity; however, it can be noted that there is an increase in lightning activity in the last two years analyzed, 2022 and 2023.
26 Nov 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
27 Nov 2024Published in ESS Open Archive