Recoil leader formation and development

The existing interpretation in the lightning literature, based on field measurements, defines recoil leaders as negative leaders. However recoil leaders are floating conductors, and, based on this physical assumption, they should be defined as bipolar and bidirectional leaders. This physics-based as...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of electrostatics 2013-08, Vol.71 (4), p.763-768
Main Authors: Mazur, Vladislav, Ruhnke, Lothar H., Warner, Tom. A., Orville, Richard E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bidirectional
Channels
Electrodeless discharges
High speed
Lightning
Magnetic fields
Positive leader
Recoil
Recoil leader
Return strokes (lightning)
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Summary:The existing interpretation in the lightning literature, based on field measurements, defines recoil leaders as negative leaders. However recoil leaders are floating conductors, and, based on this physical assumption, they should be defined as bipolar and bidirectional leaders. This physics-based assumption has never previously been verified experimentally. Such verification, reported in this paper, has been obtained from observations of branched upward positive leaders from a tall tower using a high-speed video system synchronized with electric and magnetic field change and luminosity measurements on the ground. The analysis of these observations clearly reveals the nature of recoil and dart leaders as bidirectional and bipolar electrodeless discharges that develop from a small region along a path of the decayed channels of a previous positive leader, or a positively charged return stroke of negative CG flashes. •We verified that recoil leaders are bidirectional and bipolar leaders.•We explained why recoil leaders were perceived previously as negatively charged.•We confirmed the bidirectional leader concept proposed by Kasemir for all types of lightning leaders.
ISSN:0304-3886
1873-5738
DOI:10.1016/j.elstat.2013.05.001