P4.16
Lightning Watch and Warning Support to Spacelift Operations
Johnny W. Weems, Air Force Weather Agency, Patrick AFB, FL; and C. S. Pinder, W. P. Roeder, and B. F. Boyd
The Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS)/Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Complex, located on the east central coast of Florida, is the primary site for America�s spacelift operations. This location is near the most active lightning region in the United States and so requires unique instrumentation and meteorological support. The USAF�s 45th Weather Squadron provides this meteorological support. Lightning within 5 NM watch and warnings are implemented for 10 distinct operationally significant locations on KSC and CCAFS, with another 3 watch/warning areas at nearby locations. The cloud-to-ground lightning data are examined in detail for one of these areas, Launch Complex 40/41, for an eight-year period. This examination reveals some interesting insights related to equipment upgrades, implementation of new technologies, and changes in forecast philosophy. Even small changes in detection capability can have a large impact on meteorological support, both positively and negatively. Comparison of cloud to ground strike events with actual watch/warnings shows the need for advanced detection equipment and implementation of new forecast techniques which could distinguish between the potential for lightning and the actual occurrence of cloud-to-ground strikes, particularly in the dissipation stage of thunderstorms.
Poster Session 4, Poster Session - Instruments and Data Collection�with Coffee Break
Wednesday, 1 August 2001, 2:30 PM-4:00 PM
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