Pseudo Geostationary Lightning Mapper (PGLM) Products
The Pseudo Geostationary Lightning Mapper (PGLM) Products are demonstration products for use in the GOES-R Proving Ground and have been used since 2010 in the Spring Program in Norman, Oklahoma. Each card below represents one version of the PGLM product. For more details on any product, click the link at the bottom of each card. To see actual real-time data, click the link at the bottom right of the card.
For more information, see the PGLM Overview at the bottom of this page.
RESEARCH
PGLM 8-km Flash Initiation Density
A variant of the PGLM flash extent density, this product shows the number of flashes that initiate in each 8-km grid box.
details | real-time data
Pseudo GLM Overview
The Pseudo Geostationary Lightning Mapper (PGLM) is a series of demonstration products for the future Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) that will be launched aboard GOES-R. The PGLM products are part of SPoRT's GOES-R Proving Ground (PG) efforts and have been used in real-time at the Spring Program in Norman Oklahoma since 2010. The various PGLM products are derived from ground-based total lightning data taken from networks in North Alabama, Washington D.C., Kennedy Space Center, and Norman, Oklahoma. Part of SPoRT's efforts with the PG have been to produce these products in AWIPS II with software plug-ins produced in collaboration with the Huntsville, Alabama National Weather Service Office.
It is important to note the intended role of the PGLM products. The PGLM products are not intended to replace the official Algorithm Working Group's Geostationary Lightning Mapper's proxy product. The PGLM products are designed as a fill-in product until the official proxy is ready to be transitioned. Like the GLM proxy, the PGLM is derived from ground-based data. However, the PGLM does not take into account co-incident observations by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission's (TRMM) Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS). The GLM proxy uses the TRMM LIS as an on-orbit "truth" observation, as the LIS instrument is the closest analog to the future GLM instrument. However, the PGLM products serve an important role. The PGLM products are designed to teach end users about the concepts of total lightning. In addition, the PGLM products, using the GLM's estimated resolution, will help prepare end users for the type of spatial and temporal resolution the GLM will provide once launched. In addition to being a training tool, the PGLM products give end users the opportunity to begin collaborating with developers to help design better products and visualizations within the AWIPS II environment for when GLM data are available. Once the GLM proxy is developed, it will replace the PGLM products, but the lessons learned from the PGLM will support the transition of the proxy data.
For more information on the GOES-R Proving Ground, visit The GOES-R Program Office.
For more information on total lightning, visit SPoRT's Total Lightning page.
For more training modules on total lightning and the PGLM, visit SPoRT's Training page.