A Numerical Study on Charge Distribution in Leader Channel of Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Discharges

A consistent physical model that describes the relationship between cloud charges and lightning was produced and used to simulate the charge density in the leader channel based on the bi directional leader model. The results indicated that the total charge in the leader channel increases when it closes to ground. It was found that the average charge density in the leader channel just before it reaches the ground is 1.5×10 -3 C·m -1 , and the total charge in the leader channel is 14.8 C. The induced charge density in the leader channel is 0.34×10 -3 C·m -1 , which takes about 20% of the total charge in the leader channel, indicatingthat the most common way by which charges stored in the leader channel was the transporting of cloud charges.