Intra-Cloud and Cloud to Ground Lightning Relationships to Severe Weather Characterization over the US CONUS

This work explores the behaviour of the Intra Cloud (IC) and Cloud to Ground of negative (-CG) lightning flashes as a function of the storm severity. The lightning flash data are acquired by the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) and the Earth Networks Total Lightning Network (ENTLN). The radar severe weather proxy data are outputs by the Warning Decision Support System Integrated Information tracking system by the NOAA/OU. The Joint histograms between averaged -CG/IC ratios, Maximum Expected Size Hail (MESH) and Vertically Integrated Liquid (VIL) are computed for a large number of tracked storm clusters and the relationships between the -CG/IC vs. MESH and -CG/IC vs. VIL exhibit strong negative trends, consistently throughout the US CONUS. These results appear supportive of the general notion that describes the convective intensification and the theorized elevated charge mechanism. These results are currently researched for possible employment in Numerical Weather Prediction models as part of the Lightning Forecast Algorithm (LFA).