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Thunderstorm electric fields probed by extensive air showers through their polarized radio emission

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We observe a large fraction of circular polarization in radio emission from extensive air showers recorded during thunderstorms, much higher than in the emission from air showers measured during fair-weather… Click to show full abstract

We observe a large fraction of circular polarization in radio emission from extensive air showers recorded during thunderstorms, much higher than in the emission from air showers measured during fair-weather circumstances. We show that the circular polarization of the air showers measured during thunderstorms can be explained by the change in the direction of the transverse current as a function of altitude induced by atmospheric electric fields. Thus by using the full set of Stokes parameters for these events, we obtain a good characterization of the electric fields in thunderclouds. We also measure a large horizontal component of the electric fields in the two events that we have analyzed.

Keywords: air showers; radio emission; extensive air; electric fields

Journal Title: Physical Review D
Year Published: 2017

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