University of Tokyo graduate student Yuuki Wada with colleagues from Japan discover a connection between lightning strikes and two kinds of gamma-ray phenomena in thunderclouds.
University of Tokyo graduate student Yuuki Wada with colleagues from Japan discover a connection between lightning strikes and two kinds of gamma-ray phenomena in thunderclouds. The research suggests that in certain conditions, weak gamma-ray glows from thunderclouds may precede lightning bolts and their accompanying gamma-ray flashes.
In the city of Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, in central Japan, Wada and colleagues work with local schools and businesses to install radiation monitors onto buildings. These radiation monitors are not there due to some worry about local radiation levels, though. They form a network, the purpose of which is to detect radiation coming from the sky. It may surprise some, but it’s been known for around 30 years that thunderstorms can bring with them gamma-ray activity.
“Forever, people have seen lightning and heard thunder. These were the ways we could experience this power of nature,” said Wada. “With the discovery of electromagnetism, scientists learned to see lightning with radio receivers. But now we can observe lightning in gamma rays - ionizing radiation. It’s like having four eyes to study the phenomena.”
Read more at University of Tokyo
Image: A thundercloud can carry over 1 billion volts of electricity. (Credit: 2019 Yuuki Wada)
