Meteorological Agency speaks out about the number of more than 23,000 lightning strikes in the North this morning

Regarding this content, on the afternoon of April 25, Mr. Nguyen Vinh Thu - Director of the Center for Hydrometeorological Observation Techniques shared with the press that currently, information on the number of lightning strikes and the map of thunderstorm locations are being provided in real time on the website www.hymetnet.gov.vn. This is a data source installed based on a measurement system of 18 measuring stations nationwide. At each station, the number of lightning strikes is scanned in a range of 400-600km that the Center for Hydrometeorological Observation Techniques has announced.

According to Mr. Thu, with modern equipment, each discharge between clouds and from clouds to the ground is recorded. In reality, the intensity of lightning will be very different. Weak lightning may not be perceived by humans with normal senses. Only when the intensity of the lightning is large enough can we feel it as lightning and thunder. Therefore, there is no consistency between the number of lightning strikes counted by the device and the number of thunders according to common concepts.

Another fact is that the device measures lightning in a certain area with scanning ranges from 400-600km, so lightning statistics cover a wide area, not only Vietnam but also countries in the region such as Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and part of the East Sea.

Lightning is not a terrestrial entity but moves through clouds at very different speeds. Therefore, it cannot be counted according to administrative boundaries in a conventional way.

"Back to the number of more than 23,000 lightning strikes in the North this morning that the press reported. In fact, this is the number of lightning strikes measured over a large area as mentioned above. It includes the number of lightning strikes between clouds and from clouds to the ground. The number of lightning strikes to the ground is less than 50% of the above number. And in fact, the number of lightning strikes that we feel in the North will be much less.

However, lightning is always an element of surprise. Just one lightning strike can cause damage to life and property. A scientific statistic shows that 70% of lightning globally occurs in the tropics. In which, Vietnam is located in the thunderstorm center of Asia. During the current transitional months, the risk of thunderstorms will be higher than other times of the year," said Mr. Thu.

The Director of the Center for Hydrometeorological Technical Observation emphasized: "The maps displaying thunderstorms that we provide are intuitive for the community to refer to in order to increase their preparedness when they see a thunderstorm approaching their locality. Scientific statistics are not consistent with the amount of lightning that we think. Instead, we should focus on increasing our preparedness and applying lightning prevention rules to minimize damage."

Ngoc Nga

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/co-quan-khi-tuong-len-tieng-ve-con-so-hon-23000-cu-set-doi-xuong-mien-bac-sang-nay-post546647.html