Analysis of Satellite and Ground Based Lightning Detection Network Performance in Photographed Supercell and Multicell Events

Modern sensors measure multiple facets of the physical characteristics of electric discharges in our atmosphere. Cloud-to-ground (CG) and intracloud (IC) lightning are recorded using an iPhone wide-angle camera, which is coincident with lightning observed by GOES-16, -17, and -18 Geostationary Lightning Mappers (GLM), the West Texas Lightning Mapping Array (WTLMA), the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN), and Earth Networks Total Lightning Network (ENTLN) lightning sensors. In this study, we examine CG and IC flashes, analyzing the charge and flash structure across these sensors and networks. Stroke polarity and type are obtained from the low-frequency (LF) networks, complemented by high resolution channel locations indicated by the very high frequency (VHF) WTLMA source locations. Furthermore, video recordings have an overlayed timestamp displayed to further aid in matching cases to the detection network. The goal of this analysis is to determine which sensing methods are most reliable based on validation via video stills.