Characteristics of Mesopheric Sprites in the Hokuriku Area and their Causative Lightning Discharges

Abstract

Mesospheric optical phenomena(including sprites) are becoming an interesting subject from the standpoint of atmosphere-ionosphere coupling. This paper deals with our observation of sprites associated with winter thunderstorms in the Hokuriku area and we show the characteristics of those sprites and their parent lightning discharges. Although the scale of Japanese lightning in winter is very small as compared with the MCS (Mesoscale Convective System) for the summer continental lightning, the essential quantities (polarity, charge transfer etc.) are found to be nearly the same as those for those MCS. However, there might be required an additional factor, such as the self-organization of the lightning.