As the Arctic Warms, Lightning Strikes are More Frequent -- Even Near the North Pole
upstart writes in with an IRC submission:
As the Arctic warms, lightning strikes are more frequent -- even near the North Pole:
As the Arctic warms, lightning strikes are more frequent -- even near the North Pole
In fact, Arctic lightning has tripled in just the last decade, according to a new study, published this week in the Geophysical Research Letters.
The University of Washington study used data collected by its network of lightning sensors, called the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN), which has been tracking lightning strokes globally since 2004. The data showed that above 65 degrees latitude the number of lightning strikes has increased significantly from 2010 to 2020.
While the study focused on areas inside the Arctic Circle -- northern portions of Canada, Alaska, Russia, Greenland and the central Arctic Ocean -- not all of those areas had equal results.
[...] In August 2019, there was one particularly unique event in which nearly 30 strikes were registered less than about 60 miles from the North Pole. This was a "major convective event" and it was unique to have lightning that close to the North Pole, according to the study.
Journal Reference:
R. H. Holzworth, J. B. Brundell, M. P. McCarthy, et al. Lightning in the Arctic, Geophysical Research Letters (DOI: 10.1029/2020GL091366)
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