Latitude Dependence of Peak Lightning Return Stroke Current- A Theoretical Explanation

The experimental data show that the peak currents of first and subsequent lightning return strokes increase with decreasing latitude. In this paper the reason for this dependence of current amplitude is explained using the fact that the height of the charge centers increases with decreasing latitude. The results obtained show that in tropical regions peak first and subsequent return stroke currents are located in the vicinity of 42 kA and 15 kA, respectively. This theoretical prediction is in agreement with available experimental data.