Lightning warning system based on a slow antenna

Abstract

This study presents a slow antenna that has been develop to work as a lightning warning system (LWS). The sensor has been developed by STORM-T Laboratory of the University of São Paulo as part of a research and development program of the Companhia Energética do Ceará (COELCE). The LWS built can detect intra-cloud (IC) and cloud to ground (CG) lightning that is used to predict the probability of CG occurrence. The system is a slow-antenna integrated with a microcontroller and a single board computer that proportionate a compact design and low cost. Furthermore, the firmware can be update to include more detecting features anytime.