Video: European satellite captures lightning strikes

The primary ever satellite instrument able to constantly detecting lightning throughout Europe and Africa has now been switched on. New animations from the modern ‘Lighting Imager’ affirm the instrument will revolutionize the detection and prediction of extreme storms.

ESA together with European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat) right this moment have launched the primary animations from the Lightning Imager onboard the primary Meteosat Third Era satellite, which launched on 13 December 2022.

The Lightning Imager, constructed by Leonardo, can constantly detect fast flashes of lighting in Earth’s environment whether or not day or night time from a distance of 36 000 km. The instrument has 4 cameras overlaying Europe, Africa, the Center East and components of South America. Every digicam can seize as much as 1000 photographs per second and can constantly observe lightning exercise from space.

Each animation incorporates a sequence of photographs created by gathering one minute’s price of lightning measurements, overlaid on a single picture of Earth from the Lightning Imager.

Information from the Lightning Imager will give weather forecasters higher confidence of their predictions of extreme storms, significantly in distant areas and on the oceans the place lightning detection capabilities are restricted.

Simonetta Cheli, Director of Earth Commentary Programmes at ESA, commented on the exceptional capabilities of the instrument: “The animations present the instrument’s capacity to precisely and successfully detect lightning exercise over the entire space of the cameras’ subject of view, which covers 84% of the Earth disc.

“ESA and Eumetsat, along with European industrial companions, are guaranteeing the advantages of extremely modern new know-how are felt by communities and sectors of the economic system in Europe and past.”

Detecting and analyzing lightning information will present useful help to the research of short-term climate forecasts and to understanding the implications of such phenomena on climate change. On the identical time, the Lightning Imager can even play a key function in air visitors security, provided that lightning poses a excessive danger to plane’s onboard instrumentation.

Eumetsat Director Common, Phil Evans, commented, “Extreme storms are sometimes preceded by abrupt adjustments in lightning exercise. By observing these adjustments in exercise, Lightning Imager information will give climate forecasters extra confidence of their forecasts of extreme storms.

“When these information are utilized in conjunction with the high-resolution information from the Versatile Mixed Imager, climate forecasters can be higher in a position to observe the event of extreme storms and have an extended lead-in time to warn authorities and communities.”

Leonardo Undertaking Engineering Supervisor for the Lightning Imager, Guia Pastorini, added, “The Lightning Imager has 4 cameras and each can seize 1000 photographs per second, day and night time, detecting even a single lightning bolt quicker than the blink of a watch.

“Because of particular algorithms, information is processed on board to ship solely helpful data to Earth, supporting the event of extra correct climate forecasts, in addition to contributing to the research of climate phenomena and air transport security.

“Along with ESA and Eumetsat, and coordinating a global industrial group, Leonardo has been engaged on this excellent know-how for 10 years, and right this moment we’re very proud to current the pictures of the primary European lightning hunter, the one on the planet with these distinctive performances.”

Whereas the animations are a primary preliminary outcome from the Lightning Imager, the Meteosat Third Era Imager is at the moment present process its commissioning phase throughout which the devices are calibrated and the info is validated. Information from the Lightning Imager can be out there for operational use in early-2024 at an elevated sensitivity.

The MTG satellites are constructed by a big consortium of European industries, led by Thales Alenia House in cooperation with OHB. The modern Lightning Imager was developed by Leonardo in Italy, whereas Telespazio supplies Eumetsat with launch and in-orbit companies.