Research on the competition of upward leaders issued from the transmission line

The lightning attachment process is an important field in the lightning protection of the transmission line. As the downward leader approaches the transmission line, several upward leaders could be generated. It also exhibits the competition among upward leaders. These leaders deposit charge on their path and this charge modifies the electric field in the vicinity of the transmission line. The effect of several connecting leaders on the lightning attachment process is studied in the present paper. The results show that the process of attachment of the lightning to the transmission line is affected significantly by the competition of upward leaders. The competition characteristic of upward leaders should be taken into account to improve the accuracy of the calculation of the lightning protection of the transmission line.