On the Contribution of Turbulence to the Electrification of Thunderclouds

Abstract

The contribution of turbulence to the electrification of thunderstorm clouds is considered for the first time using a model of the large-scale electric field generation in a weakly conducting media containing two fractions of colliding hydrometeors. The calculation results are compared with experimental data. It has been found that scenarios of electric-field generation and growth are significantly different for inductive and noninductive charging mechanisms. The range of thundercloud parameters (of conductivity and particle radii) for which the electric field grows exponentially in the case of inductive charging has been found. In the case of noninductive charging, it has been shown that the electric field strength grows linearly in time due to intensive fluctuations of the electric charge. The linear growth of the electric field can be a significant factor when approaching the threshold of the discharge initiation.