Similarity analysis of the streamer zone of Blue Jets

Multiple observations of Blue Jets (BJ)) show that BJ emits a fan of streamers similar to a laboratory leader. Moreover,in the exponential atmosphere those long streamers grow preferentially upward, producing a narrow coneconfined by the aperture angle. It was also noticed that BJ are similar to the streamer zone of a leader (streamer corona) and the modeling studies based on the streamers fractal structure were conducted. Objective of this paper is to study the fractal dimension of the bunch of streamer channels emitted by BJ, at different altitude and under the varying reduced electric field. This similarity analysis has been done in three steps: First we described the dendritic structure of streamers in corona discharge applying the fractal theory. Then using this model and the data from existing laboratory experiments we obtained the fractal dimension of the branching streamer channels. Finally the model was validated by the observations of BJ available from the literature.

[arXiv:1512.09187]

The energy spectrum of X-rays from rocket-triggered lightning

Although the production of X-rays from natural and rocket-triggered lightning leaders have been studied in detail over the last 10 years, the energy spectrum of the X-rays has never been well measured because the X-rays are emitted in very short but intense bursts that result in pulse pileup in the detectors. The energy spectrum is important because it provides information about the source mechanism for producing the energetic runaway electrons and about the electric fields that they traverse. We have recently developed and operated the first spectrometer for the energetic radiation from lightning. The instrument is part of the Atmospheric Radiation Imagery and Spectroscopy (ARIS) project and will be referred to as ARIS-S (ARIS Spectrometer). It consists of seven  NaI(Tl)/photomultiplier tube scintillation detectors with different thicknesses of attenuators, ranging from no attenuator to more than  of lead placed over the detector (all the detectors are in a  thick aluminum box). Using X-ray pulses preceding 48 return strokes in 8 rocket-triggered lightnings, we found that the spectrum of X-rays from leaders is too soft to be consistent with Relativistic Runaway Electron Avalanche. It has a power law dependence on the energies of the photons, and the power index, λ, is between 2.5 and 3.5. We present the details of the design of the instrument and the results of the analysis of the lightning data acquired during the summer of 2012.

11th Conference "Plasma Physics in the solar system."

From 15 to 19 February 2016 Space Research Institute (Moscow) will organize the 11^th Conference "Plasma Physics in the solar system."