MT4YN-Atmospheric Electricity

Module Provider: Meteorology
Number of credits: 10 [5 ECTS credits]
Level:7
Terms in which taught: Spring term module
Pre-requisites: MT24B Atmospheric Physics MT12C Skills for Environmental Science
Non-modular pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded: MT38N Atmospheric Electricity
Current from: 2023/4

Module Convenor: Dr Keri Nicoll
Email: k.a.nicoll@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:

This module introduces atmospheric electricity in a global context.

Aims:

The aim of the module is to introduce atmospheric electricity in a global context, equipping the student with knowledge of both local and global effects, charge production in clouds and the fair weather electric field, along with the experimental techniques that have been developed to make these measurements.

Assessable learning outcomes:

• Appreciation of the elementary quantities of atmospheric electrostatics including fields, currents, conductivity and frequency spectra;


• An appreciation of the operation of lightning detection networks;


• An understanding of charging in clouds and formation of lightning discharges;


• An understanding of the global electric circuit;


• Awareness of the potential hazards that result from atmospheric electricity and how they can be mitigated.

This module will be assessed to a greater depth than the excluded module MT38N.

Additional outcomes:

Outline content:

• Cloud electrification and lightning: Generation and distribution of lightning; Classification of lightning types; Detection of lightning through optical emissions, thunder, sferics and ULF waves etc;


• Troposphere - upper atmosphere interaction: Above-cloud discharges, sprites and elves; Relativistic electrons and transient luminous flashes; infrasonic waves; Electromagnetic pulse; gravity waves;


• Lightning hazards, risks and mitigation: lightning risk to people, buildings, aircraft. Mitigation through detection, forecasting, avoidance, and lightning conductors.


• Ionisation in the lower atmosphere: Cluster ions in the aerosol spectrum; air conductivity; charge effects on droplets; layer cloud edge charging; cosmic rays;


• The global atmospheric electric circuit: Surface measurements, current density and the potential gradient; Fair weather electric field; radioactivity and aerosol pollution; Global distribution of thunderstorms; The Carnegie curve; Global circuit, ENSO and Space Weather

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:
Lectures and tutorials.