Over 572 million lightning pulses detected across the country

AEM, the essential source for environmental insights, today announced the release of its 2022 U.S. Lightning Report. Throughout 2022, the company’s Earth Networks Total Lightning Network® detected more than 86 million total lightning flashes, which were comprised of over 572 million total lightning pulses.

Unsurprisingly, the lightning capital of the United States, Florida, led all other states with the greatest density of lightning flashes. Its 103 lightning flashes per square mile translated to more than 5.5 million total lightning flashes across the state, and those flashes were made up of more than 62 million lightning pulses.

Although Florida had the most lightning activity per square mile, it was Hawaii that had the most thunder hours, or hours with lightning activity in its vicinity (more than 23,000).

“Hawaii’s high number of thunder hours might seem surprising, since Hawaii has one of the lowest lightning densities of any state,” said Dr. Elizabeth DiGangi, a lightning scientist at AEM. “However, Hawaii’s tropical ocean climate results in frequent thunderstorms on and around the island chain, which in aggregate produce much less lightning than those we typically see across the continental United States. This is why thunder hours are an important supplemental metric for understanding thunderstorm frequency – a piece of the story not well-captured by measurements of only lightning volume and lightning density.”

At the county level, six Florida counties made the top-10 list of counties with the densest lightning activity. However, the county with the densest lightning activity was Poquoson City, Va., with an average of 300 lightning flashes per square mile. Providing context for the observation, Dr. DiGangi noted, “Poquoson City is situated near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, a region that the National Park Service reports has experienced greater precipitation extremes and a 10% increase in annual precipitation.”

Other noteworthy insights from the report:

• California, another state with a comparatively low amount of lighting activity per square mile, ranked among the top 10 states for most thunder hours (likely driven by the state’s monsoon season, which can bring frequent storms with minimal lightning activity to the mountains).
• The monsoon season was also a key factor in an exceptional lightning storm that sparked fires across California – and in creating the conditions that helped prevent those fires from causing much more destruction.
• We explain why Hurricane Ian’s dramatic spike in lightning activity before making landfall in Florida was accompanied by a sudden increase in wind speeds.
• We examine why the lighting activity that visited northwestern New York in mid-November came with record-setting snowfall.

Dr. DiGangi will present findings from the 2022 U.S. Lightning Report, along with her expert commentary, during a free webinar on Feb. 15. To register and get details about the event, visit the AEM website.

The lightning activity detailed in the report was detected by AEM’s proprietary Earth Networks Total Lightning Network (ENTLN), which monitors both in-cloud and cloud-to-ground lightning activity in more than 100 countries. With more than 1,800 sensors and scientifically advanced detection algorithms, the ENTLN is the most extensive lightning detection network in the world. In fact, since algorithm changes in 2021, the ENTLN detects 50% more lightning worldwide than ever before. Plus, in regions with higher sensor density, the network’s lightning detection efficiency climbs above 95%.

About AEM

AEM is combining global technology leaders like Earth Networks to empower communities and organizations to survive and thrive in the face of escalating environmental risks. By deploying intelligent sensing networks, operating a secure and scalable data management infrastructure, and delivering high-value analytics through a suite of end-user applications, AEM serves as the essential source for environmental insights. These technologies enable positive outcomes, helping reduce environmental impact and creating a safer world. For more information, visit https://aem.eco.

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