Calculation of the Critical Rocket Height for Upward Leader Inception in Rocket-Triggered Lightning
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/f0et9330Keywords:
Rocket-triggered lightning, Upward leader inception, Critical rocket height, Background electric field, Finite-element calculationAbstract
Determining the critical rocket height for upward-leader inception is important for evaluating the triggering conditions of rocket-triggered lightning and selecting appropriate experimental conditions. A two-dimensional axisymmetric electrostatic model of the rocket–triggering wire–ground system was established to investigate the critical rocket height for upward-leader inception in rocket-triggered lightning. The electric field at 0.7 m above the rocket tip was calculated under different rocket heights and cloud-to-ground background electric fields. Based on the upward-leader inception criterion, an electric field of 500 kV/m at this position was adopted as the threshold for determining the critical rocket height. The results showed that the electric field above the rocket tip increased approximately linearly with both rocket height and background electric field. A stronger background electric field significantly reduced the critical rocket height required for upward-leader inception. These results provide a quantitative basis for evaluating the triggering conditions of rocket-triggered lightning.
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