Impact of Various Disturbance Sources on the Atmospheric Electric Field and Thunderstorm Activity of the Northern Tien-Shan

Abstract

Features of the manifestations of various sources of disturbances in the atmospheric electric field at the Tien-Shan high-mountain station have been studied, and the statistical relationship between solar and thunderstorm activity has been established. Air currents arising over the ocean, having overcome the mountain gorges of the Himalayas, carry moisture to the Northern Tien-Shan and determine the weather features and thunderstorm activity at the Tien-Shan high-mountain station. It was established that the maximum and minimum thunderstorm activity at the Tien-Shan high-mountain station corresponds to the distribution curve of daily thunderstorm activity for the Asia–Australia region. The investigation showed that coronal mass ejections (CMEs) affect the atmospheric electric field by increasing or decreasing its level or causing its fluctuations, depending on the features of manifestations in the near-Earth space and in the Earth’s magnetosphere. In at least 70% of cases, thunderstorm activity was observed with a 1–2-day delay after impact on the Earth’s magnetosphere by CMEs and HSSs. A number of cases were studied when thunderstorm activity was observed in a quiet geomagnetic field. In these cases, an increase in the values of fmin (the minimum frequency of reflection from the ionosphere) and foEs (the critical frequency of the sporadic E layer) was observed, which indicated an increase in the level of radio wave absorption in the ionospheric D-region and the level of electron density at altitudes of 100–120 km.