The PGLM tool was used to start development of forecasting applications using the GLM before the satellite was launched. Flashes were sorted, and a Flash Extent Density product was created to approximate the resolution of the GLM. The PGLM used total lightning data from three Lightning Mapping Array (LMA) networks including the Oklahoma Lightning Mapping Array (OKLMA) and the Lightning Detection and Ranging network that detects radio waves emitted in the very high frequency range by lightning flashes. The Pseudo-Geostationary Lightning Mapper (PGLM) was the primary lightning training tool for the GOES-R program in preparation for the launch of the GLM. Does the GLM see the same signatures of a strong updraft that we observed with an LMA? What flashes can it not measure because not enough light made it out of the cloud to space? If light from the lightning doesn't make it out of the cloud, does that mean that bulky raindrops and hailstones prevented the light from escaping? Could this be a way to monitor the presence of hail in the cloud? One thing to consider with a brand new instrument is that there are also brand new things to learn about what it sees. This record was broken in 2020 by a flash 709 km (441 mi) long observed with the GLM over South America! But, the GLM can monitor a much larger area than the OKLMA. How does the total lightning in a hurricane rain band change as it makes landfall? Can we use lightning to improve our weather forecast models? How far can a single lightning flash travel? The previous record recognized by the World Meteorological Organization was 321 km (199 miles) long and was observed by the Oklahoma Lightning Mapping Array (OKLMA) in 2007. The GLM also provides a brand new, constant monitor of lightning over a large area that scientists at NSSL and elsewhere can use to address research questions we were not able to address before. This technology helps severe weather forecasters identify rapidly intensifying thunderstorms so they can issue accurate and timely severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings. These satellites are each equipped with a Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) that detects the light emissions from both cloud-to-ground and inter-cloud lightning which escape the cloud and make it to space. GOES-17 covers the western half and was launched in 2018. The first GOES-R satellite, GOES-16, which covers the eastern half of the United States, was launched in 2016. The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R Series ( GOES-R) is the current generation of geostationary weather satellites. NSSL is investigating how lightning characteristics relate to updrafts, precipitation, and severe storm processes. This data shows where lightning initiates in a storm, where the storm is carrying net charge, and how large of an area a flash covers. Thousands of points can be mapped for an individual lightning flash to reveal its location and the development of its structure. The Oklahoma Lightning Mapping Array (OKLMA) provides three-dimensional mapping of lightning channel segments over Oklahoma. We continue to learn more about lightning structure and behavior while developing methods to use lightning data to improve severe weather forecasts and warnings. NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory researchers have studied lightning for almost half a century.
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