Timothy Logan
  • Director of the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) Network
  • Assistant Professor

Biography

Courses

ATMO 201 – Weather and Climate – introductory meteorology class

ATMO 291/491 – Independent Undergraduate Research 

ATMO 463 – Air Pollution Meteorology

ATMO 612 – Physical Meteorology II

ATMO 689 – Professional Development in Atmospheric Science

Impact

The HLMA provides a service to the surrounding community by providing timely and reliable lightning data to make informed decisions in regards to public safety interests while providing quality data for collaborative, interdisciplinary research within the university community and for K-12 STEM projects.

Professional Links


Additional Information

“How to stay safe from lightning strikes this summer” – NBC The Today Show July 9, 2022

https://www.today.com/video/how-to-stay-safe-from-lightning-strikes-this-summer-143726149977

 

Extreme weather: ‘Megaflash’ lightning records certified by WMO

https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/01/1110942

*This record setting lightning flash was captured by several media markets with an outreach of over 8 billion views/downloads/hits. The HLMA was used to confirm the origin of the megaflash in Texas.

 

New lightning records reveal power of nature and new advances in monitoring technology

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/02/07/new-lightning-records-reveal-natures-power-and-technologys-advances/6657308001/

 

Rare Wintertime Thunderstorms Recorded over the U.S. Gulf Coast

https://eos.org/articles/rare-wintertime-thunderstorms-recorded-over-the-u-s-gulf-coast

 

How the Saharan Dust Plume Affects North America – Texas A&M Today

https://today.tamu.edu/2020/07/16/how-the-saharan-dust-plume-affects-north-america/

 

Saharan Dust Plume Slams U. S., Kicking Up Climate Questions – E&E News and Scientific American

https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063454665

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/saharan-dust-plume-slams-u-s-kicking-up-climate-questions

 

Lightning Safety Story – The Eagle (Bryan, TX)

https://www.theeagle.com/news/local/tips-can-reduce-risk-of-being-hit-by-lightning/article_6afd1962-52f2-5929-bd40-3e11b3f177ef.html

 

Saharan Dust Story – The Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, TX)

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/weather/article215252090.html

 

Why You Can Smell Rain

https://theconversation.com/why-you-can-smell-rain-101507

Research Interests

My current research consists of the following funded projects:

 

(1) NSF funded collaborative research to examine cloud top discharges (CTDs) over Texas. This study (2024-2027) employs the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) to analyze lightning behavior and charge structure of thunderstorm which produce CTDs along with jets, gigantic jets, gnomes, and other types of never-seen-before cloud top lightning phenomena.

 

(2) NSF funded research to elucidate aerosol impacts on lightning and severe weather using observations and modeling sensitivity approaches from the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) and a Texas A&M WRF model with atmospheric electricity parameterization. This effort seeks to analyze lightning behavior, charge structure, and precipitation of numerous selected cases from the NSF funded Experiment of Sea Breeze Convection, Aerosols, Precipitation and Environment (ESCAPE), the Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment (TRACER), and other notable events that occurred within the confines of the HLMA over the past decade. Emphasis will be placed on storms which have been known to ingest wildfire smoke as well as storms which develop in highly polluted regions of Southeast Texas/Houston Metro area. These storm cases are compared to storms which develop in cleaner, rural areas.

 

(3) Using total lightning to investigate aerosol radiative and microphysical effects on deep convection. Data from the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) is used in a funded collaborative NASA ROSES study, ‘Integrative Analysis of Aerosol Effects on Convective Cloud and the Associated Lightning Characteristics Based on Satellite Retrieval, WRF Modeling, and Machine Learning (2022-2025)’. The objectives of our proposed research are to provide insights into aerosol microphysical and radiative effects on convective clouds and the associated lightning generation by integrating observational analyses focusing on satellite measurements and modeling studies with both statistical and physical models.

 

(4) Aerosol impacts on lightning and severe weather in the Houston Metropolitan Area. The NSF funded Experiment of Sea Breeze Convection, Aerosols, Precipitation and Environment (ESCAPE) project (2020-2024) employs the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) to analyze lightning behavior within the confines of a larger multi-platform and interdisciplinary field campaign, the DOE funded Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment (TRACER). Thunderstorm charge structure and ice nucleating properties of aerosols are investigated using observations from storms which develop in clean and polluted environments.

 

My primary research goals are (1) investigate the relationship between lightning source/flash rates and precipitation/flooding events in the Houston Metropolitan Area and communities along the Texas Gulf Coast, (2) discern the possible impacts of biomass burning smoke aerosols on severe weather and lightning frequency and intensity, and (3) analyze the seasonal and long-term aerosol impacts on deep convective cloud development.

Current research additionally includes using machine learning algorithms to cluster and track large groups of single cell, multicell, and mesoscale convective systems during their life cycles which incorporates lightning flash and source data, charge structure data, and precipitation analyses. Future work includes storm intensity prediction based off of machine learning methods to incorporate into the Houston Lightning Mapping Array website for public use. The data will also be made available to the science community. In addition, there are future plans to expand coverage of the Houston Lightning Mapping Array to investigate the impacts of marine and tropical convection on communities and business interests along the Texas Gulf Coast as well as over remote areas of the Gulf of Mexico.

Additional Notes

Students in the ATMO 291/491 research sections are currently working on lightning activity during the 2022 Hunga-Tonga volcanic eruption and using total lightning data to diagnose severe weather, CTDs, and transient luminous events (TLEs) over Texas and Louisiana.

 

  • Atmospheric Electricity
  • Aerosol-cloud Interactions
  • Biomass Burning Aerosols

Educational Background

  • B.A. IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE FROM UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA 1993
  • M.S. IN ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE FROM UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA 2009
  • PH.D. IN ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE FROM UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA 2014

Awards & Honors

  • 2015: TAMU Atmospheric Science Department Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award
  • 2015: Hubei Province, China Scientific Paper Award “Mao, F., W. Gong, and T. Logan (2013), Linear Segmentation Algorithm for Detecting Layer Boundary with LIDAR, Optics Express, 21(22), doi:10.1364/oe.21.026876.”
  • 2014: American Meteorological Society Best Student Poster Award
  • 2011: National Science Foundation East Asian and Pacific Summer Institutes (EAPSI) in China Fellowship
  • 2009: North Dakota Space Grant Consortium Fellowship

Selected Publications

        • Logan, T., B. Xi, X. Dong, R. Obrecht, Z. Li, and M. Cribb (2010). A Study of Asian Dust Plumes Using Satellite, Surface, and Aircraft Measurements during the INTEX-B Field Experiment, J. Geophy. Res., 115, D00K25, doi:10.1029/2010JD014134.
        • Logan, T., B. Xi, X. Dong, Z. Li, and M. Cribb (2013). Classification and Investigation of Asian Aerosol Properties, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 2253-2265, www.atmos-chem-phys.net/13/2253/2013/doi:10.5194/acp-13-2253-2013.
        • Logan, T., B. Xi, and X. Dong (2014). Aerosol properties and their influences on marine boundary layer cloud condensation nuclei at the ARM mobile facility over the Azores, J. Geophys. Res., 119, doi:10.1002/2013JD021288.
        • Tian P., X. Cao, L. Zhang, N. Sun, L. Sun, T. Logan, J. Shi, Y. Wang, Y. Ji, Y. Lin, Z. Huang, T. Zhou, Y. Shi, and R. Zhang (2017). Seasonal and spatial variations in aerosol vertical distribution and optical properties over China from long-term satellite and ground-based remote sensing. Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 2509-2523, http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/17/2509/2017/doi:10.5194/acp-17-2509-2017.
        • Logan, T., X. Dong, and B. Xi (2018). Aerosol properties and their impacts on surface CCN at the ARM Southern Great Plains site during the 2011 Midlatitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment. Adv. Atmos. Sci., 35(2), 224–233, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00376-017-7033-2.
        • Logan, T. (2018). Anomalous Lightning Behavior during the 26-27 August 2007 Northern Great Plains Severe Weather Event. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos., 123, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JD027750.
        • Li, R., G. Tang, J. Ding, T. Logan, S. D. Brooks, D. R. Collins, P. Yang and G. W. Kattawar (2018). Laboratory measurements of light scattering properties of kaolinite dust at 532 nm, Aerosol Sci. Tech., doi:10.1080/02786826.2018.1444729, 1-13.
        • Bowen P., Y. Wang, J. Hu, Y. Lin, J.-S. Hsieh, T. Logan, X. Feng, J. H. Jiang, Y. Yung, and R. Zhang, (2018). Impacts of Saharan Dust on Regional Climate and Tropical Cyclogenesis over the Atlantic, J. Clim., https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-16-0776.1.
        • Pan Z., F. Mao, W. Wang, T. Logan, J. Hong (2018). Examining Intrinsic Aerosol-Cloud Interactions in South Asia through Multiple Satellite Observations, J. Geophys. Res. Atmos., 123, https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JD028232, 1-15.
        • Zhang, Y., J. Fan, T. Logan, Z. Li, and C. R. Homeyer (2019). Wildfire impact on environmental thermodynamics and severe convective storms, Geophys. Res. Lett., 46. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GL084534
        • Zheng, X., B. Xi, X. Dong, T. Logan, Y. Wang, and P. Wu (2020). Investigation of Aerosol-Cloud Interactions under Different Absorptive Aerosol Regimes using ARM SGP Ground-Based Measurements, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-3483-2020, 3483-3501.
        • Logan, T., X. Dong, B. Xi, X. Zheng, P. Wu, Y. Wang, **E. Marlow, and **J. W. Maddux (2020). Quantifying Long-Term Seasonal and Regional Impacts of North American Fire Activity on Continental Boundary Layer Aerosols and Cloud Condensation Nuclei, Earth and Space Science, 7, e2020EA001113. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020EA001113. **Undergraduate Independent Research Students
        • Wang, Y., X. Zheng, X. Dong, B. Xi, P. Wu, T. Logan, and Y. Yung (2020). Impacts of long-range transport of aerosols on marine-boundary-layer clouds in the eastern North Atlantic, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 14741-14755. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-14741-2020.
        • Pan, B., Wang, Y., Logan, T., Hsieh, J.‐S., Jiang, J. H., Li, Y., & Zhang, R. (2020). Determinant role of aerosols from industrial sources in Hurricane Harvey's catastrophe. Geophysical Research Letters, 47, e2020GL090014. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL090014.
        • Logan, T. (2021). An analysis of the performance of the Houston Lightning Mapping Array during an intense period of convection during Tropical Storm Harvey, J. Geophys. Res. Atmos., 126, e2020JD033270. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JD033270. Special Issue: The Three Major Hurricanes of 2017: Harvey, Irma, and Maria
        • Zheng, X., Xi, B., Dong, X., Wu, P., Logan, T., and Wang, Y. (2022). Environmental effects on aerosol–cloud interaction in non-precipitating marine boundary layer (MBL) clouds over the eastern North Atlantic, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 335–354, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-335-2022, 2022.
        • Peterson, M. J., T. J. Lang, T. Logan, C-W Kiong, M. Gijben, R. Holle, I. Kolmasova, M. Marisaldi, J. Montanya, S. D. Pawar, D. Zhang, M. Brunet, and R. S. Cerveny (2022). New WMO Certified Megaflash Lightning Extremes for Flash Distance (768 km) and Duration (17.01 seconds) Recorded from Space, Bull. Amer. Met. Soc., 21, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-21-0254.1.
        • Kollias P., McFarquhar G., Bruning, E., Demott, P. J., Kumjian, M. R., Lawson, P., Lebo, Z., Logan, T., et al. (2024). Experiment of Sea Breeze Convection, Aerosols, Precipitation and Environment (ESCAPE). Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (published online ahead of print 2024). https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-23-0014.1.
        • Zheng, X., Dong, X., Xi, B., Logan, T., and Wang, Y. (2024). Distinctive aerosol–cloud–precipitation interactions in marine boundary layer clouds from the ACE-ENA and SOCRATES aircraft field campaigns, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10323–10347, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10323-2024, 2024.
        • Logan, T., Dong, X., Xi, B., Zheng, X., Wu, L., #Abramowitz, A., #Goluszka, A., and #Harper, M. (2024). Assessing radiative impacts of African smoke aerosols over the southeastern Atlantic Ocean. Earth and Space Sci., 11, e2023EA003138. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023EA003138. (#Undergraduate)
        • Bruning, E. C., K. N. Brunner, M. van Lier-Walqui, T. Logan, and T. Matsui (2024). Lightning and radar measures of mixed phase updraft variability in tracked storms during the TRACER field campaign in Houston, Texas. Mon. Wea. Rev., https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-24-0060.1.
        • Logan, T., *Hale, J., *Butler, S., *Lawrence, B., and #Gardner, S. (2024). “Occurrence of Rare Lightning Events during Hurricane Nicholas (2021)” Earth and Space Sci., 11, https://doi.org/10.1029/2024EA003733.
        • Logan, T., 2024: Thunderstorm Electrification, Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Science, 3rd Edition, Elsevier, 2024, ISBN 9780124095489, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-96026-7.00059-X.