Ιt is with great pleasure that I share with you the image of the first sprite we capture with LEONA Network as part of RELAMPAGO-CACTI Campaign

  • Time to read 1 minute
First LEONA Sprite 2018 with caption

We recorded the image around 23:10 h with the LEONA station installed at CRILAR in Anillaco, Argentina, last Friday (30 November 2018) night. The thunderstorm, apparently a MCS, was over La Rioja province. We were at the INTA site in Chamical finishing up installing the last LEONA station there (3 out of 3 in Argentina) and at the same time started recording remotely both from LEONA station at CRILAR Anillaco and at INTA Las Marias. The storm moved into Chamical, with lots of rain, lightning and strong winds, and cut out the light there. We left back to our hotel about the same time the LEONA system recorded the events.

We have been here in Anillaco now since Sunday (2 December), doing final adjustments to LEONA station here, and are leaving to Santiago del Estero tonight 4 December (~500 km trip) to do the same with the LEONA Las Marias station. 

We were able to record for 50 min, in the preliminary analysis of the videos we counted:

- 6 sprites (carrots and columns, single events and groups);
- 1 halo or elve (need more detailed analysis with lightning data to be able to tell);
- 1 possible blue jet (very difficult to catch. Of course there are the photographs from amateurs in the internet, but the last video I know is from Wescott et al. [1995], please do correct me if I am wrong);
- 2 possible new phenomena with spherical shape (also need detailed analysis and lightning to tell).

I am extremely happy that this 10 year project, LEONA, is starting to be fruitful and within the project RELAMPAGO, of which I am a participant, also together with CACTI project, which has teamed up with RELAMPAGO!

 So far we could not find TLEs in the Las Marias recordings, to be able to do triangulation, but it is not straightforward to review videos with remote connection, in the next few days we will be there and therefore able to tell for sure.

I hope to catch some more amazing events before the end of the campaign, Dec. 18th, and many more after that, since these LEONA stations will be permanently installed here.

Cheers,

Eliah São Sabbas. 
 
Dr. Eliah Fernanda M. T. São Sabbas                           
Aeronomy Division
National Institute for Space Research - INPE
Av. dos Astronautas 1758, Jardim da Granja
12227-010 São José dos Campos, SP, Brazil