Collaborative Research: Multiparametric Analyses of Volcanic Aerosols and the Effects on Lightning Generation

University Of Alabama Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa AL

Investigators

Abstract

This project will determine the role of volcanic ash particles from explosive eruptions and hydrometeor (ice, water, hail, etc.) concentrations on lightning generation. Earth observations, laboratory measurements, and model simulations will be used to track the size and abundance of these particles at the onset of eruption and throughout their transport in the atmosphere to identify relationships with lightning characteristics over time. This project will determine the value of the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), onboard the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite series (GOES-16 and -17), for tracking and characterizing volcanic lightning during eruptions, as this tool has been seldom used despite its ability to continuously monitor numerous active volcanoes in the Western Hemisphere, including the U.S.A. This project will launch the careers of several science students at two different Alabama universities and aid scientists at volcano observatories in using GOES satellite data to better assess volcanic hazards following eruptions. Additionally, project results will become part of the lightning exhibit at the Alabama Museum of Natural History in Tuscaloosa, which explains the effects of lightning on materials. Museum staff will develop grade school teaching materials focused on lightning and will freely distribute these materials on their website. In the first analysis of volcanic lightning using the GLM, lightning jumps were identified during the 2018 explosive eruption of Volcan Fuego in Guatemala. Since the 2018 eruption of Fuego, several other volcanoes have erupted and produced lightning within the GOES field of view. To fully diagnose the impact of volcanic emissions on aerosol-cloud microphysical processes and consequently, lightning production, observations, laboratory measurements, and model results will be synthesized, using the following inter-related steps. 1) Identify explosive eruptions that produce lightning within the GOES field of view. 2) Acquire and analyze satellite retrievals of ash plume characteristics (i.e., ash/hydrometeor concentration, grain size) coincident with lightning occurrence. 3) Analyze lightning occurrence from both GLM and ground-based sensors to obtain the most complete picture of lightning activity over the timescale of eruption and specific characteristics (i.e., size, energy, current) of discharge events. 4) Determine if a quantifiable relationship exists between data collected during the second and third steps. 5) Measure ash sample properties in the laboratory to confirm/refute satellite retrievals and calculate variables for input into models. 6) Conduct, revise, and test various model simulations to constrain the explosive eruption source parameters that produce the observed data. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.