Corona processes and lightning attachment: The effect of wind during thunderstorms

A simple model of a glow corona occurring near the tip of a grounded electrode in a thundercloud electric field that can be enhanced by an approaching downward leader has been studied analytically and numerically with regard to the effect of wind. We obtained an approximate expression for corona current taking into account the (i) removal of space charge from the coronating point due to ion drift and wind and (ii) image of the charge in the ground. As the wind velocity decreases to zero, the expression tends to that obtained previously in the absence of wind. It was shown analytically and numerically that, in a thundercloud electric field, even moderate wind velocities lead to hundreds of percent increase in the corona current. This current decreases with time only slightly in a steady thundercloud electric field, as opposed to the current behavior in the absence of wind. However, even strong wind is not sufficient to affect the properties of a corona intensified in the electric field of an approaching downward leader. The occurrence of wind does not affect the conditions for initiation of an upward connecting leader from grounded objects and consequently the efficiency of lightning rods of ordinary height. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.