• Lightning Imager animations provide “additional confidence” in storm monitoring
• New satellite project aids forecasters in predicting severe storms
• Lightning Imager data enhances accuracy of weather forecasts and safety of air travel

As part of the project, a series of animations based on lightning measurements have been created. It is hoped that these animations will give experts “additional confidence” when monitoring future storms.

Spectacular animations depicting lightning storms across the globe have been created using data from a new satellite project, which will aid forecasters in predicting severe storms.

The European weather agency, Eumetsat, and the European Space Agency (ESA) have released the first animations based on data collected by the Leonardo Lightning Imager, which was deployed on the Meteosat Third Generation satellite system above Africa in December.

The system has cameras covering Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and sections of South America and can detect a single bolt “faster than the blink of an eye,” as described by the European Space Agency (ESA).

Guia Pastorini, the imager’s project manager, stated, “The Lightning Imager has four cameras, and each can acquire 1,000 images per second, day or night, detecting a single lightning strike in less time than it takes to blink.

“Thanks to specific algorithms, data is processed on board to transmit only useful information to Earth, contributing to the development of more accurate weather forecasts, the study of weather phenomena, and the safety of air travel.

“Together with ESA and Eumetsat, and coordinating an international industrial team, Leonardo has been working on this groundbreaking technology for the past ten years.

Today, we are extremely proud to unveil the images of the first European lightning hunter, the only one in the world with these exceptional capabilities.”

Storm animations were created from a one-minute sequence of pictures and lightning data.

The data from the Flexible Combined Imager, the Meteosat satellite’s other primary Earth observation instrument, will also be used to assist forecasters and weather experts in tracking future cyclones.

Phil Evans, the director-general of Eumetsat, stated, “Severe storms are frequently preceded by sudden changes in lightning activity.”

By observing these variations in activity, Lightning Imager data will also increase the forecasters’ confidence in their predictions of severe storms.

When these data are combined with high-resolution data from the Flexible Combined Imager, weather forecasters will be better able to trace the development of severe storms and will have more time to warn authorities and communities.