Diurnal patterns in lightning activity in northern tropical Africa

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)



Description :
The AA. analyze summertime lightning incidence data across northern tropical Africa from the TRMM satellite sensor during 1998–2011. They use harmonic analyses to detect the spatial patterns in diurnal variations of lightning activity across the study area. The results are in conformity with previous studies examining diurnal patterns of convective weather processes in this region, with most lightning activity concentrated over land areas. The peak time of lightning activity over most of the study area was during late afternoon hours. The peak time of lightning activity was observed during early morning hours in some coastal areas, such as Cameroon, which can be a result of local-level convergence between the land and sea breeze. A general progression in the time of lightning activity from late afternoon to early evening hours was observed throughout the interior of the study area, which may be attributed to land-surface heating and associated mesoscale convective systems, and to upper-level circulation in the form of the African Easterly Jet Stream.


Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Physical geography, issn : 0272-3646, 2013, vol. 34, n°. 2, p. 75-84, nombre de pages : 10, Références bibliographiques : 2 p.

Date :
2013

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Abingdon, Taylor and Francis