A simple parameterization has been developed to simulate global lightning distributions. Convective cloud top height is used as the variable in the parameterization, with different formulations for continental and marine thunderstorms. The parameterization has been validated using two lightning data sets: one global and one regional. In both cases the simulated lightning distributions and frequencies are in very good agreement with the observed lightning data. This parameterization could be used for global studies of lightning climatology; the Earth's electric circuit; in general circulation models for modeling global lightning activity, atmospheric NOx concentrations, and perhaps forest fire distributions for both the present and future climate; and, possibly, even as a short-term forecasting aid. 9919 9920 PRICE AND RIND: GLOBAL LIGHTNING PARAMETERIZATION 100.0 0.1 ß Florida (1976, 1978) ß/ ß New Mexico ( 1981 ) // ß New England (1960) •,, -5 4.9 F=3.44x10 H ß ß I , I / Iß I III t lO Cloud Height (km)

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For CG energies we adopt a production rate of 10 x 1016 molecules NO/J based on the current literature. Using a method to simulate global lightning frequencies from satelliteobserved cloud data, we have calculated the LNOx on various spatial (regional, zonal, meridional, and global) and temporal scales (daily, monthly, seasonal, and interannual). Regionally, the production of LNO• is concentrated over tropical continental regions, predominantly in the summer hemisphere. The annual mean production rate is calculated to be 12.2 Tg N/yr, and we believe it extremely unlikely that this number is less than 5 or more than 20 Tg N/yr. Although most of LNO• is produced in the lowest 5 km by CG lightning, convective mixing in the thunderstorms is likely to deposit large amounts of NO• in the upper troposphere where it is important in ozone production. On an annual basis, 64% of the LNO• is produced in the northern hemisphere, implying that the northern hemisphere should have natural ozone levels as much as 2 times greater than the southern hemisphere, even before anthropogenic influences. The amount of 03 produced from this NOx is expected to exceed the stratospheric source by a factor of 1.5, and thus the hemispheric asymmetry in LNOx would lead to a significant excess of northern hemisphere 03 even in the preindustrial troposphere. (The monthly climatologies for LNO• on a 1 ø x 1 ø latitude-longitude grid can be obtained by e-mail to cprice@flash.tau.ac.il.)

An earthquake is an element of the global electric circuit (GEC) -this new idea suggested in the space age is tested in our study. In the frame of the GEC concept, one may expect that tectonic structures of the northern and southern hemi spheres may be magnetically conjugated. It is found that the midocean ridges of the southern hemisphere, located along the boundary of the Antarctic lithosphere plate, are magnetically conjugated with the areas of the junction of continental orogens and platforms in the northern hemisphere. The closest geomagnetic conjugacy exists between the southern boundary of Nazca lithospheric plate and the northern boundaries of Cocos and Caribbean lithospheric plates. Аннотация: Проведено тестирование новой идеи, рожденной в эру космических исследований, что землетрясение является элементом глобальной электрической цепи, в рамках которой можно ожидать, что тектонические структу ры в северном и южном полушариях Земли могут быть магнитосопряженными. Выявлено, что срединноокеани ческие хребты южного полушария, расположенные вдоль границы Антарктической литосферной плиты, магнитно сопряжены с зонами сочленения орогенных и платформенных структур в северном полушарии. Наиболее выражен ная геомагнитная сопряженность наблюдается между южной границей литосферной плиты Нацка и северной грани цей литосферных плит Кокос и Карибская.Ключевые слова: тектонические структуры, геомагнитная сопряженность.