title: Prediction of Lightning Inception by Large Ice Particles and Extensive Air Showers.
abstract: We derive that lightning can start if the electric field is 15% of the breakdown field, and if elongated ice particles of 6 cm length and 100 free electrons per cm3 are present. This is one particular example set from a parameter range that we discuss as well. Our simulations include the permittivity ε(ω) of ice. 100 free electrons per cm3 exist at 5.5 km altitude in air showers created by cosmic particles of at least 5×10(15)  eV. If the electric field zone is 3 m high and 0.2  km2 in the horizontal direction, at least one discharge per minute can be triggered. The size distribution of the ice particles is crucial for our argument; more detailed measurements would be desirable.
authors.affiliation: Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI), Amsterdam, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dubinova
authors.affiliation: Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI), Amsterdam, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Casper
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rutjes
authors.affiliation: Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI), Amsterdam, Netherlands.|Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ute
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Ebert
authors.affiliation: Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Stijn
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Buitink
authors.affiliation: Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.|KVI-CART, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Scholten
authors.affiliation: KVI-CART, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Gia Thi Ngoc
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Trinh