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The Széchenyi István Geophysical Observatory, also known as the Nagycenk Geophysical Observatory (NCK), was established in 1957. It has been the only measurement site in Hungary where observations of various parameters of the atmospheric global electric circuit are made in the framework of organized research under the umbrella of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA). Measurements of the atmospheric electrical potential gradient (PG) and Schumann resonances (SRs) running quasi-continuously in the observatory for decades provide an invaluable source of information for geophysical research. This paper gives an overview on the history of the observatory and particularly on various atmospheric electricity (AE) measurements on-site to commemorate the efforts and excellence of the people who served atmospheric sciences by dedicating their lives to obtaining high-quality, reliable data and scientific achievements at the highest possible level.

International audience; In 1999, the first sprites were observed above European thunderstorms using sensitive cameras. Since then, Eurosprite campaigns have been conducted to observe sprites and other transient luminous events (TLEs), expanding into a network covering large parts of Europe and coastal areas. In 2009 through 2013, the number of optical observations of TLEs reached a peak of 2000 per year. Because of this unprecedented number of European observations, it was possible to construct a climatology of 8394 TLEs observed above 1018 thunderstorm systems and study for the first time their distribution and seasonal cycle above Europe and parts of the Mediterranean Sea. The number of TLEs per thunderstorm was found to follow a power law, with less than 10 TLEs for 801 thunderstorms and up to 195 TLEs above the most prolific one. The majority of TLEs were classified as sprites, 641 elves, 280 halos, 70 upward lightning, 2 blue jets and 1 gigantic jet. The climatology shows intense TLE activity during summer over continental areas and in late autumn over coastal areas and sea. The two seasons peak, respectively, in August and November, separated by March and April with almost no TLEs, and a relative minimum around September. The observed TLE activity, i.e. mostly sprites, is shown to be largely consistent with lightning activity, with a 1/1000 of observed TLE-to-lightning ratio in regions with most observations. The overall behaviour is consistent among individual years, making the observed seasonal cycle a robust general feature of TLE activity above Europe

Schumann resonances (SR) are the electromagnetic oscillations of the spherical cavity bounded by the electrically conductive Earth and the conductive but dissipative lower ionosphere (Schumann in Z Naturforsch A 7:6627–6628, 1952). Energetic emissions from the Sun can exert a varied influence on the various parameters of the Earth’s SR: modal frequencies, amplitudes and dissipation parameters. The SR response at multiple receiving stations is considered for two extraordinary solar events from Solar Cycle 23: the Bastille Day event (July 14, 2000) and the Halloween event (October/November 2003). Distinct differences are noted in the ionospheric depths of penetration for X-radiation and solar protons with correspondingly distinct signs of the frequency response. The preferential impact of the protons in the magnetically unshielded polar regions leads to a marked anisotropic frequency response in the two magnetic field components. The general immunity of SR amplitudes to these extreme external perturbations serves to remind us that the amplitude parameter is largely controlled by lightning activity within the Earth–ionosphere cavity.

Superposed epoch analysis (SEA) was used to study possibly statistically significant variations of the critical frequency (foEs) and virtual height (h’Es) of the sporadic E layer (Es) related to thunderstorm activity generated in the troposphere. The reference time for the SEA was the time of lightning strokes measured by the World Wide Lightning Location Network at the ionosonde station of Rome (41.9 $$^\circ $$ N, 12.5 $$^\circ $$ E) during the year 2009. The results obtained reveal that: (a) a statistically significant decrease of foEs after the time of lightnings has been found for time windows of $$\pm $$ 100 h; (b) the effects of thunderstorms on the ionosphere is larger when the thunderstorm approaches from the opposite direction to the mean neutral stratosphere–mesosphere wind flow; (c). a statistically significant decrease of foEs related to thunderstorms during nighttime was observed. No significant changes in foEs and hEs over the seasonal time scale as well as in the latter parameter in the three (a–c) cases related to thunderstorms.

Possible thunderstorm – sporadic E (Es) layer coupling effects are investigated during two measurement periods, one in 2013 and one in 2014. The analysis was based on ionospheric observations obtained from a Digisonde at Pruhonice, the Czech Republic, an ionosonde at Nagycenk, Hungary, and a 3.59 MHz five-point continuous HF Doppler system located in the western part of the Czech Republic. The latter is capable of detecting ionospheric wave-like variations caused by neutral atmospheric waves generated by thunderstorms. The present study searches for possible impacts on Es layers caused by the presence of two active thunderstorms: one passing across the Czech Republic on June 20, 2013 (19:00–01:00 LT), and one through Hungary on July 30, 2014 (11:00-01:00 LT). During these two time periods, presence and parameters of Es layer were inferred from ionograms, recorded every minute at Pruhonice and every two minutes at Nagycenk, whereas concurrent lightning activity was monitored by the LINET detection network. In addition, transient luminous events (TLEs) were also observed during both nights from Sopron, Hungary and from Nýdek, the Czech Republic. A noticeable fact was the reduction and disappearance of the ongoing Es layer activity during part of the time in both of the traversing thunderstorms. The analysis indicated that the critical frequency foEs dropped below ionosonde detection levels in both cases, possibly because of thunderstorm activity effects. This option, however, needs more case studies in order to be further substantiated.

This paper gives a resume of the papers written in English which (a) describe some of the recording instruments in use at the Nagycenk Observatory (NCK) since the International Geophysical Year (IGY 1957–1958) and up to the present time, (b) summarise the most important and different types of observations associated with thunderstorms which have been made there, and (c) discuss their various geophysical interpretations. The paper describes the main results which have been obtained in four areas of thunderstorm associated atmospheric and geospace science within the context of Earth system science. These relate to the following parameters of atmospheric electricity: the vertical electric potential gradient just above the Earth’s surface and the air–Earth current as well as the point discharge current, Schumann resonance (SR) signals of the Earth-ionosphere cavity at 8, 14 and 20 Hz, transient luminous events (TLEs), and some aspects of the behaviour of the ionosphere. Deductions from these data sets are concerned with the global lightning activity and the conductivity of the air, with diurnal, seasonal, annual and long-term variations of the SR amplitudes and resonant frequencies in terms of migrating thunderstorm centres, with transient SR excitations and with sprites and other TLEs, and with ionospheric disturbances. The paper closes with some thoughts on future research directions based on the observations at NCK and Sopron and the results achieved since the IGY.

The Global atmospheric Electric Circuit (GEC) is a fundamental coupling network of the climate system connecting electrically disturbed weather regions with fair weather regions across the planet. The GEC sustains the fair weather electric field (or potential gradient, PG) which is present globally and can be measured routinely at the surface using durable instrumentation such as modern electric field mills, which are now widely deployed internationally. In contrast to lightning or magnetic fields, fair weather PG cannot be measured remotely. Despite the existence of many PG datasets (both contemporary and historical), few attempts have been made to coordinate and integrate these fragmented surface measurements within a global framework. Such a synthesis is important elvinin order to fully study major influences on the GEC such as climate variations and space weather effects, as well as more local atmospheric electrical processes such as cloud electrification, lightning initiation, and dust and aerosol charging. The GloCAEM (Global Coordination of Atmospheric Electricity Measurements) project has brought together experts in atmospheric electricity to make the first steps towards an effective global network for atmospheric electricity monitoring, which will provide data in near real time. Data from all sites are available in identically-formatted files, at both one second and one minute temporal resolution, along with meteorological data (wherever available) for ease of interpretation of electrical measurements. This work describes the details of the GloCAEM database and presents what is likely to be the largest single analysis of PG data performed from multiple datasets at geographically distinct locations. Analysis of the diurnal variation in PG from all 17 GloCAEM sites demonstrates that the majority of sites show two daily maxima, characteristic of local influences on the PG, such as the sunrise effect. Data analysis methods to minimise such effects are presented and recommendations provided on the most suitable GloCAEM sites for the study of various scientific phenomena. The use of the dataset for a further understanding of the GEC is also demonstrated, in particular for more detailed characterization of day-to-day global circuit variability. Such coordinated effort enables deeper insight into PG phenomenology which goes beyond single-location PG measurements, providing a simple measurement of global thunderstorm variability on a day-to-day timescale. The creation of the GloCAEM database is likely to enable much more effective study of atmospheric electricity variables than has ever been possible before, which will improve our understanding of the role of atmospheric electricity in the complex processes underlying weather and climate.