Note:
3D Total Lightning Observation Network in Tokyo Metropolitan Area (Tokyo LMA)
Namiko Sakurai*,, Koyuru Iwanami*, Shingo Shimizu*, Yasushi Uji*, Shin-ichi Suzuki*, Takeshi Maesaka*, Ken-ichi Shimose*, Paul R. Krehbiel**, William Rison**,***, and Daniel Rodeheffer**,***
*National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED)
3-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0006, Japan
Corresponding author
**New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, New Mexico, USA
***LMA Technologies, LLC, New Mexico, USA
The National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience deployed a lightning mapping array (LMA) in the Tokyo metropolitan area in March 2017. Called the “Tokyo LMA,” it obtains detailed three-dimensional observations of the total lightning activity (cloud-to-ground and intracloud flashes) in storms. The network initially consisted of 8 receiving stations, expanded to 12 stations in March 2018. Real-time total lightning images were first opened on the webpage in Japan. Real-time observations from the Tokyo LMA will be used in nowcasting lightning hazards and mitigating lightning disasters. Archived data will be used to develop lightning prediction techniques and a lightning climatology for the Tokyo metropolitan area.
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