Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. (2025) 10.1073/pnas.2510535122: “High-resolution geostationary satellite observations of free tropospheric NO2 over North America and implications for lightning emissions.” The atmosphere contains 78% nitrogen, in the form of paired “dinitrogen” molecules with a taut triple bond as tight as the cinch on a horse’s saddle. Takes lots of energy to disrupt, but when that is accomplished, the result is “free tropospheric nitrogen dioxide [FT NO2], [which] helps drive global atmospheric oxidant chemistry.
“Dang et al. used satellite observations to show that lightning dominates FT NO2 production in nonwinter seasons over North America, and that commonly used model estimates of its production contain large errors.” They also detected diurnal variations in FT NO2 The researchers applied ‘cloud-slicing’ to the Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) geostationary satellite instrument, + produced a unique high-quality FT NO2 dataset over North America including the first measurements of the diurnal cycle.
“Comparison of TEMPO FT NO2 data “with the Goddard Earth Observation System-Composition Forecasts (GEOS-CF) atmospheric chemistry model shows overall consistent magnitudes, seasonality, and diurnal variation, with a midday minimum in nonwinter seasons from photochemical loss.” Recall that nitrogen is critical in plant + thus animal physiology. Note for example how much nitrogen is in our RNA + DNA.
And there is a climate angle here as well. From multiple studies, including for example one from UC Berkeley, we know that for every 1ºC of global warming lightning strikes will increase by about 12%, which projects to a 50% increase by century’s end. You can’t really bottle this stuff, so it’s best to dodge it.