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GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 35, L14812, doi:10.1029/2008GL033984, 2008

Rare measurements of a sprite with halo event driven by a negative lightning discharge over Argentina

M. J. Taylor

Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA


M. A. Bailey

Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA


P. D. Pautet

Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA


S. A. Cummer

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA


N. Jaugey

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA


J. N. Thomas

Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
National Geomagnetism Program, USGS, Denver, Colorado, USA


N. N. Solorzano

Physics Department, Digipen Institute of Technology, Redmond, Washington, USA


F. Sao Sabbas

National Institute of Space Research, Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil


R. H. Holzworth

Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA


O. Pinto

National Institute of Space Research, Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil


N. J. Schuch

Brazilian Southern Regional Space Research Center, Santa Maria, Brazil


Abstract

As part of a collaborative campaign to investigate Transient Luminous Events (TLEs) over South America, coordinated optical, ELF/VLF, and lightning measurements were made of a mesoscale thunderstorm observed on February 22–23, 2006 over northern Argentina that produced 445 TLEs within a ∼6 hour period. Here, we report comprehensive measurements of one of these events, a sprite with halo that was unambiguously associated with a large negative cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning discharge with an impulsive vertical charge moment change (ΔMQv) of −503 C.km. This event was similar in its location, morphology and duration to other positive TLEs observed from this storm. However, the downward extent of the negative streamers was limited to 25 km, and their apparent brightness was lower than that of a comparable positive event. Observations of negative CG events are rare, and these measurements provide further evidence that sprites can be driven by upward as well as downward electric fields, as predicted by the conventional breakdown mechanism.

Received 13 March 2008; accepted 23 June 2008; published 29 July 2008.

Keywords: atmospheric lightning; mesospheric sprites; negative charge moments.

Index Terms: 3304 Atmospheric Processes: Atmospheric electricity; 3360 Atmospheric Processes: Remote sensing; 3332 Atmospheric Processes: Mesospheric dynamics; 3329 Atmospheric Processes: Mesoscale meteorology.

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Citation: Taylor, M. J., et al. (2008), Rare measurements of a sprite with halo event driven by a negative lightning discharge over Argentina, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L14812, doi:10.1029/2008GL033984.