There are five pages of  lightning information that consist of data collected at this site.  The lightning detector is a   Boltek Storm Tracker .  Data is gathered using Lightning 2000 by Aninoquisi Software.  The lightning detector antenna is located outdoors in a PVC housing about 30 feet above the ground.

Current Lightning Display Page :  This page shows filtered lightning strikes and is updated every 5 minutes.  Blue dots represent strikes that have been recorded in the last 20 minutes.  Red Xes represent strokes that have been recorded in the last 60 seconds. The map is centered on the antenna location in Charlestown, RI.  100 mile range rings from the antenna and a basic outline map of nearby states and the coastline are depicted.  The top left corner contains the number of strokes per minute that are currently being recorded and the bottom right corner shows the time that the image was created.  The range of the map may occasionally be changed if additional analysis is being done at the station.

The Lightning 2000 software analyzes the strokes that it receives and plots where it thinks "real" strokes occur and attempts to reject miscellaneous strokes that do not appear to be associated with actual thunderstorms.  The current lightning display page shows these strokes.

One Hour Lightning Display Loop :  This page shows a one hour loop, updated every 5 minutes, of the Current Lightning Display Page  described above.

Analysis, Raw Data, and Counters :  This page contains numerous windows showing various data that is collected by the Lightning 2000 software.  It is updated every 5 minutes.  Because this is a snapshot of the computer screen that Lightning 2000 is running on, you may occasionally see different information on the screen if the computer is being used for other purposes.

Across the top of the page there is a Stroke Rate Display graph showing the number of strokes that have been received over time.  The graph shows the number of strokes that have been counted over the past three hours - with the most recent on the right side of the graph.  It also shows the time and number of the maximum number strokes that have been recorded in the last three hours.

Covering the left half of the center of the screen is an Analysis map.  The 100 mile range rings, just like those shown on the Current Lightning Display Page , are depicted on this map.  In addition, there is a yellow ring at 50 miles and a red ring at 25 miles.  Instead of showing lightning strikes, as the Current Lightning Display Page shows, this page uses Lightning 2000 software analysis to plot locations where storms may be located.  Lightning 2000 takes stroke data from the last 5 to 20 minutes and attempts to calculate where storms may be located.  It shows the results of its analysis by drawing a box around the area where storms may be located.  This is not a precise location and should be used with caution.  If the estimated distance to the storm is more than 50 miles from the antenna, the box will be green.  If  it is between 25 and 50 miles, the box will be colored yellow.  If it is less than 25 miles, the box will be red.  If there are not enough strokes for Lightning 2000 to determine a storm may be present, there will be no boxes.

To the right of the Analysis window is a window called "Raw Lightning Data".  This shows all the electrical pulses that the antenna receives.  These pulses could be lightning strokes, sparks from power lines, electrical "noise" from electric appliances, etc.   Lightning 2000 analyzes these pulses and decides if they may be lightning from a thunderstorm or if they are just random electrical interference.  If Lightning 2000 decides they are due to interference, they will not be plotted on the real time display, and they will not be used to analyze storm locations on the analysis display.  If Lightning 2000 can not determine that the pulse is due to a storm, it does not attempt to calculate the absolute distance to the pulse.  The window will show direction relative to the antenna and distance relative to other strokes.  Just like the Current Lightning Display Page , blue dots represent strikes that have been recorded in the last 20 minutes.  Red Xes represent strokes that have been recorded in the last 60 seconds.

Above the analysis window is the Counter window.  The details of the data are shown in the following table:

Date and Time of the data on this page.

Number of strokes recorded in the last 60 seconds	Number of strokes recorded since midnight
Number of strong strokes recorded in the last 60 seconds	Number of strong strokes recorded since midnight
Number of noises recorded in the last 60 seconds	Number of noises recorded since midnight
Energy Ratio in the last 60 seconds	Total Energy since midnight

System Load of the lightning detection computer

The date, time, and number of strokes recorded are self-explanatory.  However, the number of strokes in the last 60 seconds has a color code.  If there is no background color, less than 50 strokes per minute are occurring.  If the background is yellow, then between 50 and 500 strokes per minute are occurring.  If the background is red, more than 500 strokes per minute are occurring. The remainder of the values are explained below.

Strong strokes.  These are stokes that exceed a certain intensity.  In general, the greater the number of strong strokes. the greater the chance that there is a storm nearby.  Like the 60 second stroke counter, the 60 second strong stroke counter has a color code.  If there is no background color, there have been no strong strokes in the last 60 seconds.  If the background color is yellow, there have been one to three strong strokes in the last 60 seconds.  If the background color is red, more than three strong strokes have been recorded in the last 60 seconds.

Noises.  Lightning 2000 regards all strokes that it can not determine the origin of as noise.  In most cases these noises are due to electrical sparks.  These can come from sparking power lines, electric motors, and an assortment of other electrical devices. In some cases actual lightning strokes could be considered noise by the software.  This is basically interference.

Energy Ratio.  Lightning 2000 analyses each stroke that it receives and calculates how much energy the stroke contains.  An "average" stroke has a energy ration of 100%.  If the stroke is weak, it will have a ratio less than 100%.  If it is strong, it will have a ratio greater than 100%.  This window will not display anything if there are less than 10 strokes per minute occurring.  If this value exceeds 100% the background color will turn yellow.  If it exceeds 150% the background will turn red.

Total Energy Today.  This adds the total amount of energy since midnight.  An energy ration of 100% will add a value of 1 to this counter.  In most cases, this number should be less than the total number of strokes since midnight.  However when a lot of high energy strokes are recorded during the day, this number may exceed the number of strokes for the day.

Lightning NOWCast .  This is a text screen giving a summary of what is happening at the moment the Nowcast is made.  It is updated every 5 minutes.  There are five types of alerts that may be issued on this page.  Each alert is categorized as a red or a yellow alert.  

Alert	Yellow	Red
Range Alert	Storm detected less than 50 miles	Storm detected less than 25 miles
Stroke Rate Alert	50 to 499 strokes per min detected	More than 499 strokes per min detected
Strong Stroke Rate Alert	1 to 4 strong strokes per min detected	More than 4 strong strokes per min detected
Energy Rate Alert	Energy ratio between 100 and 149%	Energy ration more than 149%
General Alert	If any of above yellow alerts are active	If any above red alerts are active

Next, the Nowcast shows the locations and intensities of storms that are detected.  It also breaks down the number of strokes, number of strong strokes, energy ration, and noise counts during the previous hour.

Daily Lightning Summary .  This text screen gives a summary of what has happened since midnight.  It is updated every five minutes.  It contains information on the total and peak strokes, strong strokes, noises, and energy level detected since midnight.  It lists the amount of time that the various alerts listed in the NOWCast explanation were active.  It also shows the highest signal strength received.