Author Topic: Is the U.S.A.'s Network Size Affecting Lightning Detection Metrics of Stations?  (Read 1661 times)

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Offline schwab

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In the U.S.A. as of August 1, 2013, there are only 9 Blitzortung stations, however, this small network is growing.

My "Green System" station #671 is in Rochester, Minnesota.

What is the best measure of any given Blitzortung station's lightning detection quality?

Is it %Efficiency?

My station with unshielded ferrites detects a significant number of genuine strikes that are NOT verified by the other 8 U.S.A. stations. This occurs most frequently with storms in my vicinity in the Midwest. Therefore, my %Efficiency appears low even though my station is detecting strikes.

Am I correct that as long as the network has a small number of stations in a large geographic area it will remain difficult to determine the true quality of any individual station's lightining detection?

I will consider making the investment to upgrade to "System Red" to improve my station's lightning detection quality.

However, it seems that the small number of stations in the U.S.A. network is the main lmiiting factor to improve lightning detection quality metrics as of August 2013.

I'd appreciate the opinions of other member stations....Thanks.

Offline dfroula

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As I mentioned in another post, efficiency ratings swing around dramatically depending on lightning distribution in the area. The new stats on Blitzortung shows that often 12 stations are all used in the position calculation. Without knowing the exact algorithm for choosing stations, it's hard to say if the variability is a function of the number of station and covered area.

I'm working on some Perl scripts to grab the data and do some analysis on it. It's likely redundant with what will be on the site but an interesting exercise. I've been importing the new data into Excel to play with the stats.

Offline Dr Obbins

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I recently purchased a Boltek system last Christmas. I witnessed a non-stop lightning show, yet very little was displayed on the StrikStar network. When I inquired, the response was that there were not enough stations to confirm my data.

Now reading here it looks like the Blitzortung network is having the same issue of not enough stations reporting. It would be nice if the Boltek and the Blitzortung used the same protocols and work together. However I asked the Blitzortung guys and they said the protocols are different. If this could be worked out somehow, it could strengthen both networks.