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IUGG XXIV General Assembly July 2-13, 2007 Perugia, Italy<br />

(S) - <strong>IASPEI</strong> - International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's<br />

Interior<br />

JSS007 Poster presentation 1971<br />

Lightning and electrical activity during the 2006 eruption of Mt. Augustine<br />

Prof. Ronald Thomas<br />

none none <strong>IASPEI</strong><br />

S.R. Mcnutt, G. Tytgat, P.R. Krehbiel, W. Rison, H. Edens<br />

We observed a sequence of lightning and electrical activity during oneof Mount St. Augustine's eruptions<br />

by using a combination of radiofrequency time-of-arrival and interferometer measurements. The<br />

systemwas developed and has been used to study lightning duringthunderstorms. In thunderstorms we<br />

obtain a detailed 3-D picture ofeach lightning flash. For a storm these give a us information toidentify<br />

the charge structure in the cloud. For thunderstorm studieswe use at least 8 ground receiving stations,<br />

but for MountSt. Augustine we were only able to setup two stations. With twostations we were able to<br />

determine the azimuthal direction to thesources, their power, the time history and relationship to<br />

otherpulses. On one lightning flash we used an interferometric effect toinfer altitude. The observations<br />

of Augustine volcano indicate that the electricalactivity had two modes or phases. First, there was an<br />

explosive phasein which the ejecta from the explosion appeared to be highly chargedupon exiting the<br />

volcano, resulting in numerous apparentlydisorganized discharges and some simple lightning. The net<br />

chargeexiting the volcano appears to have been positive. The second phase,which occurred in the<br />

plume that followed the most energeticexplosion, produced conventional-type discharges. Although the<br />

plumecloud was undoubtedly charged as a result of the explosion itself, thefact that the lightning onset<br />

was delayed and continued after and welldownwind of the eruption indicates that in situ charge<br />

separationcharging of some kind was occurring, presumably similar in somerespects to that which<br />

occurs in normal thunderstorms.<br />

Keywords: lightning, volcano, electromagnetic

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