Distribution of lightning - wikipedia Distribution of lightning The lead section of this article may need to be rewritten. Please discuss this issue on the article 's talk page. Use the lead layout guide to ensure the section follows Wikipedia 's norms and to be inclusive of all essential details. ( August 2013 ) Lightning flash density -- 12 hourly averages over the year ( NASA OTD / LIS ) This shows that lightning is much more frequent in summer than in winter, and from noon to midnight compared to midnight to noon. The incidence of individual lightning strikes in any particular place is highly variable, but lightning does have an underlying spatial distribution. In 1997, NASA and National Space Development Agency ( NASDA ) of Japan launched the first Lightning Imaging Sensor ( LIS ) - equipped satellite to detect and record lightning. Lightning is now known to occur on average 44 ( ± 5 ) times a second over the entire Earth, making a total of about 1.4 billion flashes per year. Contents 1 Ratios of lightning types 2 Distribution 3 Lightning mapping 4 References 5 External links Ratios of lightning types The lightning flash rate averaged over the earth for intra-cloud ( IC ) + cloud - to - cloud ( CC ) to cloud - to - ground ( CG ) is at the ratio : ( IC + CC ) : CG = 75 : 25. The base of the negative region in a cloud is normally at roughly the elevation where freezing occurs. The closer this region is to the ground, the more likely cloud - to - ground strikes are. In the tropics where the freeze zone is higher the ( IC + CC ) : CG ratio is about 90 : 10. At the latitude of Norway ( 60 ° lat. ) where the freezing elevation is lower the ( IC + CC ) : CG ratio is about 50 : 50. Distribution Global map of lightning frequency -- strikes / km / yr. The high lightning areas are on land located in the tropics. Areas with almost no lightning are the arctic and antarctic closely followed by the oceans with only 0.1 to 1 strikes / km / yr there. The map on the right shows that lightning is not distributed evenly around the planet. About 70 % of lightning occurs on land in the Tropics, where the majority of thunderstorms occur. The north and south poles and the areas over the oceans have the fewest lightning strikes. The place where lightning occurs most often ( according to the data from 2004 to 2005 ) is near the small village of Kifuka in the mountains of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the elevation is around 975 metres ( 3,200 ft ). This region received 158 lightning strikes per 1 square kilometer ( 409 per sq mi ) a year. Above the Catatumbo river, which feeds Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela, Catatumbo lightning flashes several times per minute and has the highest number of lightning per square kilometer in the world. Singapore has one of the highest rates of lightning activity in the world. The city of Teresina in northern Brazil has the third - highest rate of occurrences of lightning strikes in the world. The surrounding region is referred to as the Chapada do Corisco ( `` Flash Lightning Flatlands '' ). In the United States, the west coast has the fewest lightning strikes, and Central Florida sees more lightning than any other area. Florida has the largest number of recorded strikes during summer. Much of Florida is a peninsula, bordered by the ocean on three sides with a subtropical climate. The result is the nearly daily development of clouds that produce thunderstorms. For example, in what is called `` Lightning Alley '', an area from Tampa to Orlando, there are as many as 50 strikes per square mile ( about 20 per km ) per year. The Empire State Building in New York City is struck by lightning on average 23 times each year, and was once struck 8 times in 24 minutes. Lightning mapping World map showing frequency of lightning strikes, in flashes per square kilometer ( km2 ) per year ( equal - area projection ). Lightning strikes most frequently in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Combined 1995 -- 2003 data from the Optical Transient Detector and 1998 -- 2003 data from the Lightning Imaging Sensor. Official maps have delays in minutes ( Canada, USA ) or even hours ( Europe ), whereas the amateur network Blitzortung has delays usually under ten seconds. Lightning all over the world is observed by the LIS satellite system. In the US lightning monitoring is done by the National Lightning Detection Network, part of NASA 's National Severe Storms Laboratory. Maps of the U.S. lightning strike / km yr averaged from 1997 - 2010 are available from Vaisala 's National Lightning Detection Network ( NLDN ). More detailed U.S. regional lightning maps based on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) and the National Weather Service ( NWS ) data centered on different cities are put out by the Cooperative Institute for Applied Meteorological Studies at Texas A&M University. References Jump up ^ Lightning Imaging Sensor satellite and data ( 1 ) Accessed 15 Jul 2012 Jump up ^ John E. Oliver ( 2005 ). Encyclopedia of World Climatology. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4020 - 3264 - 6. Retrieved February 8, 2009. ^ Jump up to : `` Annual Lightning Flash Rate ''. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 15, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Where LightningStrikes ''. NASA Science. Science News. 2001 - 12 - 05. Retrieved July 5, 2010. Jump up ^ Uman, Martin A. ' `` All About Lightning '' ; Ch. 8 ; p. 68, Dover Publications N.Y. ; 1986 ; ISBN 9780486252377 Jump up ^ P.R. Field ; W.H. Hand ; G. Cappelluti ; et al. ( November 2010 ). `` Hail Threat Standardisation '' ( PDF ). European Aviation Safety Agency. RP EASA. 2008 / 5. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 2013 - 12 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Kifuka -- place where lightning strikes most often ''. Wondermondo. Retrieved November 21, 2010. Jump up ^ National Environmental Agency ( 2002 ). `` Lightning Activity in Singapore ''. National Environmental Agency. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2007. Jump up ^ Paesi Online. `` Teresina : Vacations and Tourism ''. Paesi Online. Retrieved September 24, 2007. Jump up ^ NASA ( 2007 ). `` Staying Safe in Lightning Alley ''. NASA. Retrieved September 24, 2007. Jump up ^ Kevin Pierce ( 2000 ). `` Summer Lightning Ahead ''. Florida Environment.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2007. Jump up ^ Uman, Martin A. ' `` All About Lightning '' ; Ch. 6, p. 47, Dover Publications N.Y. ; 1986 ; ISBN 9780486252377 Jump up ^ Canadian real time lightning detection Accessed 15 Jul 2012 Jump up ^ Lightning Detection Network Accessed 15 Jul 2012 Jump up ^ European lightning maps ( EUCLID ) Accessed 15 Jul 2012 Jump up ^ `` Blitzortung.org ''. Retrieved August 4, 2012. Jump up ^ VAISALA US lightning strike density map ( 2 ) Accessed 13 Jul 2017 Jump up ^ U.S. regional lightning strike maps ( 3 ) Accessed 30 Jul 2012 External links Blitzortung.org A worldwide, real time, community collaborative lightning location network. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Distribution_of_lightning&oldid=816874050 '' Categories : Lightning Meteorology and climate education Hidden categories : Wikipedia introduction cleanup from August 2013 All pages needing cleanup Articles covered by WikiProject Wikify from August 2013 All articles covered by WikiProject Wikify Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 24 December 2017, at 08 : 35. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. 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Question: where do the most lightning strikes occur in the world
Answer: land in the Tropics