Researchers at NewsWise-Los Alamos National Laboratory have discovered that cosmic-ray shower plays an important role in triggering lightning brightness; Was published in research journal JGR atmosphere.
“Scientists still do not fully understand how the power begins with thunder,” said Juan-Min Shao, the electromagnetic science and cognitive space application group and the lead author of the new study. “Using our 3D radio frequency mapping and polarization technology, we paid attention to an unusual pattern of how electricity starts; Instead of rapidly rapidly positive electrical discharge, the glow of lightning quickly occurred after an even faster, negative discharge. ,
In general, electricity begins after opposing electrical charges – positive and negative – separate into the clouds, resulting in a discharge that people see as electricity. In his study, who took advantage of an innovative, los almos -developed mapping and polarization system called Bimap -3D, the team observed signal polarization – how the discharge current is orient – there was a slant pattern away from the dissemination direction from these discharges, which means that they were not only after the electric field. This indicates that apart from the electric field, something else played a role at the beginning of electricity.
In addition to being thin, the team noticed that the direction of polarization changed between positive and negative discharge. The research team attributed this behavior to the cosmic-ray shower, which are high-energy particles from space that enter the Earth’s atmosphere. These cosmic rays produce secondary, high-energy electrons and positrones in the atmosphere, which lead to air and the paths are made in thunderclods, allowing electricity to follow and travel faster.
The research team found that high-energy electrons and positron were being pushed into different directions by the Earth’s magnetic field and cloud electric field, which caused the discharge discharge, ie, slant polarization by cosmic-rays. Positron and electrons were deflected in different directions in the electromagnetic field, stating why they rapidly behave differently between positive and negative discharge.
Using a 3D mapping system to discover the origin of light
In 2021, Los Alamos developed a broadband radio frequency interfensible mapping and polling system (BIMAP-3D) that provides a high-resolution, 3D lightening source mapping and sources polliation detection for detailed studies of lightning discharge physics. It is formed and developed by detecting the explosion of radio waves given by electricity, Bimap-3d Given electricity in three dimensions, given where the electricity is and also tracks its movement throughout the storm.
The system includes two stations in the Los Alamos National Laboratory at a distance of about seven miles. Each station has four sets of antennas that form a Y-shaped interferometer array, allowing scientists to make an electric map in 2D. The combination of 2D measurements between two stations enables scientists to manufacture full 3D electric maps.
“This system is unique that it detects polarization in 3D simultaneously, making us not only able to see where the electricity is, but also the direction of discharge current inside the cloud,” Shao said.
National security implication of electricity
Los Almos studies the national laboratory lieoning as it produces optical and radio frequency signals similar to an atomic explosion; It is important to be able to distinguish whether such signs are caused by electricity or nuclear phenomena. As part of the Global Protection Mission in Los Alamos, scientists use lightening to help develop better equipment for nuclear monitoring and in this process, learn a lot about the self-understanding events of lightanning.
paper: “3D radio frequency mapping and polarization observation suggests that Lightning Flash was ignited by cosmic-ray shower.” JGR atmosphere.
Funding: Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program.
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