Influence of aerosols on lightning activities in central eastern parts of China

Time series data of lightning flash rates, aerosol optical depth (AOD), surface relative humidity, potential temperature, and convective available potential energy (CAPE) for 14 consecutive summers (2001–2014) over central eastern parts of China (32.5°–40°N, 100°–120°E) have been analyzed to investigate the impact of aerosol on the lightning flash rate. The Pearson correlation and the partial correlation are used to study the linear correlations...