Meteorological Technology International
  • News
    • A-E
      • Agriculture
      • Automated Weather Stations
      • Aviation
      • Climate Measurement
      • Data
      • Developing Countries
      • Digital Applications
      • Early Warning Systems
      • Extreme Weather
    • G-P
      • Hydrology
      • Lidar
      • Lightning Detection
      • New Appointments
      • Nowcasting
      • Numerical Weather Prediction
      • Polar Weather
    • R-S
      • Radar
      • Rainfall
      • Remote Sensing
      • Renewable Energy
      • Satellites
      • Solar
      • Space Weather
      • Supercomputers
    • T-Z
      • Training
      • Transport
      • Weather Instruments
      • Wind
      • World Meteorological Organization
      • Meteorological Technology World Expo
  • Features
  • Online Magazines
    • April 2025
    • January 2025
    • September 2024
    • April 2024
    • Archive Issues
    • Subscribe Free!
  • Opinion
  • Videos
  • Supplier Spotlight
  • Expo
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook
  • Sign-up for Free Weekly E-Newsletter
  • Meet the Editors
  • Contact Us
  • Media Pack
LinkedIn Facebook
Subscribe
Meteorological Technology International
  • News
      • Agriculture
      • Automated Weather Stations
      • Aviation
      • Climate Measurement
      • Data
      • Developing Countries
      • Digital Applications
      • Early Warning Systems
      • Extreme Weather
      • Hydrology
      • Lidar
      • Lightning Detection
      • New Appointments
      • Nowcasting
      • Numerical Weather Prediction
      • Polar Weather
      • Radar
      • Rainfall
      • Remote Sensing
      • Renewable Energy
      • Satellites
      • Solar
      • Space Weather
      • Supercomputers
      • Training
      • Transport
      • Weather Instruments
      • Wind
      • World Meteorological Organization
      • Meteorological Technology World Expo
  • Features
  • Online Magazines
    1. April 2025
    2. January 2025
    3. September 2024
    4. April 2024
    5. January 2024
    6. September 2023
    7. April 2023
    8. Archive Issues
    9. Subscribe Free!
    Featured
    April 15, 2025

    In this Issue – April 2025

    By Web TeamApril 15, 2025
    Recent

    In this Issue – April 2025

    April 15, 2025

    In this Issue – January 2025

    December 13, 2024

    In this Issue – September 2024

    August 8, 2024
  • Opinion
  • Videos
  • Supplier Spotlight
  • Expo
Facebook LinkedIn
Subscribe
Meteorological Technology International
Lightning Detection

Vaisala Xweather upgrade capable of detecting damage potential of lightning strikes

Dan SymondsBy Dan SymondsJanuary 13, 20233 Mins Read
Share LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email
Credit: Pixabay
Share
LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email

Environmental and weather measurement specialist Vaisala has introduced Strike Damage Potential indicators to its Xweather suite of services.

It is the first solution to group cloud-to-ground lightning strokes into lightning strike points, providing accurate data on the potential for damage from each lightning strike.

A single cloud-to-ground lightning flash might contain tens of lightning strokes. The strokes can in turn either hit the same or separate strike points on the ground. The amount of electric charge transferred to each strike point varies on the quantity of strokes to that point and their intensity, polarity and duration.

Differences in accuracy of the data used and the types of lightning included in the measurements have caused debate in the meteorological community on how much lightning actually strikes the USA.

Chris Vagasky, meteorologist and lightning expert for Vaisala Xweather, said, “The National Weather Service says lightning strikes about 25 million times in a year in the US, while the Centers for Disease Control quotes around 40 million. That is a 60% difference. This causes confusion for the lightning protection and scientific communities.

“With the new data available, we are able to state that the six-year average between 2017 and 2022 in the United States was 58.1 million cloud-to-ground lightning strokes per year hitting 38.6 million individual strike points,” he said.

In 2021, 11 people died and 69 people were injured from being struck by lightning in the USA. Property damage was significant, with insurance claims worth more than US$1.3bn from American property owners in 2021. Additionally, lightning can cause damage to high-security structures, such as power stations and grids or storage facilities for explosives and fuel.

Vaisala Lightning Damage Potential identifies lightning strike points and ranks their potential for damage. It also identifies the damaging strikes with higher probability of continuing current – lightning that lasts longer than 40 milliseconds, which can cause extreme heating and start fires.

“Our findings will make life easier for many operating in lightning-prone areas,” said Vagasky. “For example, this data gives us an unprecedented ability to single out the lightning strokes that are most likely to start wildfires. If these early warning signs are utilized proactively, it can help people and businesses in those areas protect themselves.”

Vaisala Strike Damage Potential builds on data from Vaisala’s National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN), which measures lightning activity to an accuracy of better than 100m nationwide. The network of combined magnetic direction finding and time-of-arrival sensors accurately detects more than 99% of all cloud-to-ground lightning flashes in the continental USA, as well as over 95% of all individual lightning strokes.

Previous ArticleCost of natural disasters reaches $270bn in 2022, reports Munich Re
Next Article DTN launches WeatherFactor API to improve freight voyage planning

Read Similar Stories

Lightning Detection

Vaisala unveils helideck monitoring software for offshore operations

May 9, 20253 Mins Read
Lightning Detection

AI model predicts lightning-induced wildfires with 90% accuracy

April 10, 20252 Mins Read
Lightning Detection

Vaisala to deliver weather radar and lightning detection network across Greece

April 4, 20253 Mins Read
Latest News

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Ramla Qureshi, McMaster University’s Department of Civil Engineering

May 14, 2025

Tianjin University AI model turns street cameras into rainfall sensors

May 14, 2025

University of Exeter launches £5m, five-year project to model Sun’s atmosphere

May 13, 2025

Receive breaking stories and features in your inbox each week, for free


Enter your email address:


Supplier Spotlights
  • Adolf Thies GmbH & Co. KG
Latest Job Postings
  • Researcher/Engineer to support data-based weather forecasting (R2/RE2)

    • Barcelona
    • Barcelona Supercomputing Center - Centro Nacional de Supercomputación
    • Full Time
Getting in Touch
  • Contact Us / Advertise
  • Meet the Editors
  • Download Media Pack
  • Free Weekly E-Newsletter
Our Social Channels
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
© 2025 UKi Media & Events a division of UKIP Media & Events Ltd
  • Cookie Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Notice and Takedown Policy

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the ...
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

Performance

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

Others

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by