2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan
PS1-1

Transition of the Number of Annual Lightning
Days in Japan
Takahiro Nakashima, Kazuo Yamamoto, and Shinichi Sumi
Abstract—The damages caused by lightning on modern
electrical and electronic devices that have low resistance
against external noise tend to increase yearly. In recent years,
though an increase in the frequency of lightning strikes due to
global warming is often reported, a demonstration with
credible data has not yet been performed. We have
consolidated the data on the annual lightning days in each
region for approximately the last 100 years published
together with other weather data from the website of the
Japan Meteorological Agency, and we report the study
results.
Keywords—Japan Meteorological Agency, number of annual
lightning days, lightning, transition, winter lightning region
I. INTRODUCTION
T HOUGH the performance of electrical and electronic
devices has advanced over time owing to circuits with
low voltage and low power consumption, their resistance to
external noise has decreased [1]. The environment
surrounding Japan has changed yearly owing to the effects of
global warming, and there have been frequent reports on
tornadoes, heavy rains, typhoons, and lightning strikes in
recent years. In particular, because the increase in the
number of lightning strikes has an influence on electrical and
electronic devices that have low resistance to external noise,
it has become necessary to evaluate this situation with
credible data.
In addition to various weather data such as atmospheric
pressure, amount of rainfall, temperature, and humidity,
which are published on the website of the Japan
Meteorological Agency [2], the data regarding annual
lightning days are also being published. The annual lightning
statistics is the number of days in a year when lightning was
observed at meteorological observatories spread all over the
country. For e.g lightning day was counted as one, when a
personnel at the observatory confirmed a streak of lightning
or thunderclap. Because these data have some degree of
correlation with the land lightning density of the region
(number of lightning strikes in an area during a period), it is
T. Nakashima is with the Department of Electrical Engineering,
Chubu University, Kasugai 487-8501, Japan
(ee11041-1176@sti.chubu.ac.jp).
K. Yamamoto is with the Department of Electrical Engineering,
Chubu University, Kasugai 487-8501, Japan
(kyamamoto@mem.iee.or.jp).
S. Sumi is with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Chubu
University, Kasugai 487-8501, Japan (raijin@isc.chubu.ac.jp).
819
assumed that an increase or decrease in the number of
lightning strikes in recent years can be evaluated with some
degree of accuracy.
In this paper, we have consolidated the number of
lightning days in approximately the past 100 years for each
region published on the website of the Japan Meteorological
Agency and report our study results on the increase or
decrease in the number of lightning days.
II. DATA PROCESSING METHOD
For each meteorological observatory, the number of
lightning days per year is posted on the website of the Japan
Meteorological Agency. From the past weather data that has
been published, we converted the trend in the number of
lightning days at each location into a graph and studied the
variation. We approximated the points on this graph into a
straight line using the least squares method and calculated
the slope. Moreover, we determined the location for which
the slope of the approximated straight line was higher
(observation location with a strong increasing trend in the
number of lightning days). In addition, for ease of
understanding, the increasing and decreasing trends in the
number of lightning days in each region are plotted on maps
using different colors.
III. TRENDS IN THE NUMBERS OF LIGHTNING DAYS
Figs. 1 to 4 show the trends in the number of lightning
days in major cities in Japan, namely, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka,
and Fukuoka. Figs. 5 to 22 show the trends in the number of
lightning days for the regions that have shown strong
increasing trends in the number of lightning days. By
sequentially listing the regions of the country that have
shown a strong increasing trend, we arrived at the results
shown in Table 1. An increase in the number of lightning
days of 98 points (63 %) among the 155 observation points
throughout the country became apparent from the data. In
particular, most of the regions that showed a strong
increasing trend were the winter lightning regions, where
lightning frequently occurs in winter (the coast of the Sea of
Japan in Tohoku, Hokuriku, Kinki, and Chugoku); hence,
countermeasures for lightning have become increasingly
important in these regions.
By comparing the average of annual lightning days
throughout Japan in a 20-year period from the past, from
1941 to 1960, with the average number of annual lightning
days in the last 20 years, from 1994 to 2013, it was found that
this number increased from 13.9 days in the former period to
17.7 days in the latter period. However, it cannot be
 2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

concluded that the number of annual lightning days 40

increased uniformly throughout Japan (Table 1). Some 35
regions showed a decreasing trend, which implies that there

lightning days
30
were regional differences.
Though not as high as in the winter lightning regions, 25
increasing trends in the number of lightning days were also 20
observed in the major cities of Japan (Figs. 1 to 4). In these 15
large cities, because of the density of people and equipment, 10
the probability of a single lightning strike causing damage is 5
high, and it is expected that the importance of lightning
0
protection will increase in the future. 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year
30 Fig. 4. Fukuoka

25 80
lightning days

20 70

lightning days
60
15
50
10 40
5 30
20
0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 10
year 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Fig. 1. Tokyo
year
30 Fig. 5. Kanazawa

25 70
lightning days

20 60
lightning days

15 50
40
10
30
5
20
0
10
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Fig. 2. Nagoya
year
40 Fig. 6. Sakata

35
70
lightning days

30
60
25
lightning days

20 50
15 40
10 30
5 20
0
10
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Fig. 3. Osaka
year
Fig. 7. Fukui

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 2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

70 50
45
60
40
lightning days

lightning days
50 35
40 30
25
30 20
20 15
10
10
5
0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 8. Takada Fig. 12. Tottori

60 40
35
50
lightning days

lightning days
30
40
25
30 20
15
20
10
10
5
0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 9. Toyama Fig. 13. Fukue

60 45
40
50
35
lightning days
lightning days

40 30
25
30
20
20 15
10
10
5
0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 10. Niigata Fig. 14. Saigo

60 45
40
50
35
lightning days

lightning days

40 30
25
30
20
20 15
10
10
5
0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 11. Toyooka Fig. 15. Matsue

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 2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

60 60

50 50
lightning days

lightning days
40 40

30 30

20 20

10 10

0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 16. Wajima Fig. 20. Tsuruga

60 50
45
50
40
lightning days

lightning days
40 35
30
30 25
20
20
15
10 10
5
0 0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 17. Akita Fig. 21. Nara

50
40
45
40 35
lightning days

35 30
lightning days

30 25
25
20
20
15 15
10 10
5 5
0
0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year year
Fig. 18. Aikawa
Fig. 22. Kagoshima

40
35
lightning days

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
year
Fig. 19. Yonago

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2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

TABLE I
INCLINATION RANKING OF LIGHTNING DAYS AT EACH OBSERVATION POINT
Measurement Measurement Measurement Measurement
Inclination Inclination
No Prefecture Point start stop No Prefecture Point start stop
[days/year] [year] [year] [days/year] [year] [year]
1 Ishikawa Kanazawa 4.50E-01 1931 2013 81 Kouti Shimizu 3.47E-02 1941 2006
2 Yamagata Sakata 3.59E-01 1937 2008 82 Okinawa Naha 3.30E-02 1931 2013
3 Fukui Fukui 3.51E-01 1931 2013 83 Aomori Hatido 3.23E-02 1937 2006
4 Niigata Takada 3.39E-01 1931 2006 84 Wakayama Wakayama 3.09E-02 1931 2013
5 Toyama Toyama 3.15E-01 1939 2013 85 MIyagi Sendai 2.80E-02 1931 2013
6 Niigata Niigata 3.00E-01 1931 2013 86 Hokkaido Asahikawa 2.53E-02 1931 2013
7 Hyogo Toyooka 2.95E-01 1931 2006 87 Kyoto Kyoto 2.35E-02 1931 2013
8 Tottori Tottori 2.71E-01 1943 2013 88 Tottori Sakai 2.26E-02 1931 2002
9 Nagasaki Fukue 2.63E-01 1963 2008 89 Hokkaido Mombetsu 1.93E-02 1956 2006
10 Shimane Saigo 2.55E-01 1940 2007 90 Shizuoka Hamamatsu 1.79E-02 1931 2004
11 Shimane Matsue 2.54E-01 1941 2013 91 Hokkaido Abashiri 1.56E-02 1931 2013
12 Ishikawa Wajima 2.52E-01 1931 2009 92 Mie Tsu 1.36E-02 1931 2013
13 Akita Akita 2.51E-01 1931 2013 93 Okinawa Minamitorishima 1.14E-02 1952 2013
14 Niigata Aikawa 2.48E-01 1931 2006 94 Kouti Kouti 1.06E-02 1931 2013
15 Tottori Yonago 2.43E-01 1940 2007 95 Shiga Hikone 9.40E-03 1931 2013
16 Fukui Tsuruga 2.09E-01 1931 2004 96 Hokkaido Rumoi 7.60E-03 1943 2007
17 Nara Nara 2.08E-01 1954 2013 97 Hokkaido Kushiro 7.00E-03 1931 2013
18 Kagoshima Kagoshima 2.00E-01 1931 2013 98 Tokyo Mitakejima 4.20E-03 1942 2008
19 Kouti Murotomisaki 1.95E-01 1931 2007 99 Nagano Matsumoto 2.90E-03 1931 2006
20 Kumamoto Kumamoto 1.92E-01 1931 2013 100 Okayama Okayama -1.90E-03 1931 2013
21 Chiba Chiba 1.90E-01 1967 2009 101 Shiga Ibukiyama -3.50E-03 1931 1988
22 Oita Oita 1.85E-01 1931 2013 102 Kumamoto Asozan -4.50E-03 1933 1997
23 Fukuoka Fukuoka 1.83E-01 1931 2013 103 Hokkaido Nemuro -5.50E-03 1931 2009
24 Shimane Hamada 1.81E-01 1931 2006 104 Hokkaido Obihiro -8.00E-03 1931 2013
25 Kagoshima Tanegashima 1.79E-01 1951 2006 105 Hokkaido Kutchan -9.00E-03 1944 2005
26 Nagasaki Nagasaki 1.68E-01 1931 2013 106 Yamanashi Kofu -9.50E-03 1931 2013
27 Ibaraki Tsukuba 1.55E-01 1991 2013 107 Okinawa Yonagunijima -9.90E-03 1957 2007
28 Wakayama Shionomisaki 1.55E-01 1931 2008 108 Nagasaki Unsendake -1.28E-02 1961 2004
29 Kagoshima Yakushima 1.51E-01 1938 2007 109 Shizuoka Amishiro -1.29E-02 1938 2002
30 Gifu Takayama 1.47E-01 1931 2004 110 Totigi Okunikko -1.94E-02 1944 1996
31 Yamaguti Shimonoseki 1.43E-01 1931 2013 111 Saitama Kumatani -2.05E-02 1931 2013
32 Aomori Fukaura 1.36E-01 1940 2003 112 MIyagi Ishimaki -2.08E-02 1931 2002
33 Miyazaki Miyazaki 1.35E-01 1931 2013 113 Chiba Katsuura -2.28E-02 1931 2006
34 Kumamoto Hitoyoshi 1.33E-01 1943 1999 114 Shizuoka Irozaki -2.28E-02 1940 2002
35 Chiba Tateyama 1.29E-01 1969 2005 115 Nagano Karuizawa -2.46E-02 1931 2008
36 Saga Saga 1.21E-01 1931 2013 116 Hokkaido Hiroo -2.73E-02 1958 1998
37 Yamaguti Yamaguti 1.12E-01 1967 2009 117 Hokkaido Iwamizawa -3.03E-02 1947 2005
38 Tokushima Tokushima 1.06E-01 1931 2013 118 Hokkaido Kotaru -3.14E-02 1943 1998
39 Aomori Aomori 1.04E-01 1931 2013 119 Miyazaki Nobeoka -3.18E-02 1962 2013
40 Tokyo Titijima 1.03E-01 1970 2013 120 Hiroshima Fukuyama -4.26E-02 1942 2001
41 Kagoshima Nase 1.03E-01 1931 2013 121 Hokkaido Kitamiesashi -4.50E-02 1943 2003
42 Kyoto Maizuru 9.68E-02 1948 2012 122 Gunma Maebashi -4.73E-02 1931 2013
43 Nagasaki Izuhara 9.64E-02 1931 2008 123 Ibaraki Mito -4.79E-02 1931 2013
44 Tokushima Tsurugazan 9.54E-02 1945 1990 124 Hokkaido Ohmu -6.16E-02 1943 2003
45 Gifu Gifu 9.53E-02 1931 2013 125 Kagoshima Okinoerabujima -6.29E-02 1970 2007
46 Hiroshima Hiroshima 9.32E-02 1931 2013 126 Kagoshima Makurazaki -6.34E-02 1931 2002
47 Tokyo Ohshima 9.01E-02 1939 2008 127 Miyazaki Miyakonojo -6.44E-02 1943 1999
48 Fukushima Wakamatsu 8.81E-02 1954 2009 128 Aomori Mutsu -7.73E-02 1935 1997
49 Ehime Uwajima 8.74E-02 1931 2004 129 Hiroshima Kue -7.83E-02 1931 2001
50 Hokkaido Wakkanai 8.61E-02 1938 2013 130 Nagasaki Sasebo -8.09E-02 1947 2000
51 Hyogo Koube 8.15E-02 1931 2013 131 Shizuoka Mishima -8.45E-02 1931 2000
52 Okinawa Minamidaito 8.05E-02 1947 2013 132 Hyogo Sumoto -9.97E-02 1931 2002
53 Hokkaido Hakodate 7.97E-02 1931 2013 133 Miyazaki Aburatsu -1.00E-01 1949 2002
54 Tokyo Tokyo 7.84E-02 1931 2013 134 Saitama Titibu -1.14E-01 1931 1997
55 Hokkaido Suttu 7.80E-02 1931 2007 135 Yamaguti Hagi -1.14E-01 1949 2000
56 Iwate Ofunato 7.62E-02 1964 2005 136 Yamanashi Kawagutiko -1.14E-01 1933 2002
57 Nagano Iida 7.60E-02 1931 2005 137 Fukushima Shirakawa -1.23E-01 1940 1997
58 Yamagata Yamagata 7.30E-02 1931 2013 138 Nagasaki Hirado -1.25E-01 1940 1999
59 Kanagawa Yokohama 6.99E-02 1931 2013 139 Oita Hita -1.25E-01 1943 2000
60 Osaka Osaka 6.96E-02 1931 2013 140 Okayama Tsuyama -1.25E-01 1943 2001
61 Mie Owase 6.88E-02 1939 2006 141 Hokkaido Hahoro -1.37E-01 1931 1998
62 Shizuoka Shizuoka 6.80E-02 1940 2013 142 Mie Ueno -1.39E-01 1938 1996
63 Okinawa Miyakojima 6.63E-02 1938 2013 143 Nagano Suwa -1.39E-01 1945 1996
64 Hokkaido Muroran 6.30E-02 1931 2013 144 Yamagata Shinjo -1.40E-01 1958 1997
65 Chiba Choshi 6.24E-02 1931 2013 145 Kagawa Tadotsu -1.44E-01 1931 1960
66 Shizuoka Omaezaki 6.20E-02 1932 2009 146 Kouti Sukumo -1.54E-01 1943 2000
67 Hokkaido Esashi 5.96E-02 1941 2006 147 Yamanashi Fuzisan -1.56E-01 1900 2003
68 Hokkaido Sapporo 5.86E-02 1931 2013 148 Fukuoka Iizuka -1.78E-01 1936 2000
69 Kagawa Takamatsu 5.80E-02 1942 2013 149 Aiti Iryoko -1.80E-01 1947 1996
70 Hyogo Himezi 5.34E-02 1948 2002 150 Kagoshima Akune -1.87E-01 1940 1999
71 Nagano Nagano 5.27E-02 1931 2013 151 Okinawa Kumejima -2.22E-01 1959 2003
72 Totigi Utsunomiya 5.04E-02 1931 2013 152 Kumamoto Ushibuka -2.31E-01 1950 2001
73 Fukushima Fukushima 4.92E-02 1931 2013 153 Mie Yokkaichi -3.65E-01 1967 1996
74 Ehime Matsuyama 4.75E-02 1931 2013 154 Okinawa Iriomotejima -6.92E-01 1989 2001
75 Hokkaido Urakawa 4.60E-02 1931 2008 155 Okinawa Nago -7.72E-01 1978 2001
76 Iwate Miyako 4.15E-02 1931 2006
77 Aiti Nagoya 4.15E-02 1931 2013
78 Iwate Morioka 4.14E-02 1931 2013
79 Okinawa Ishigakijima 4.08E-02 1931 2013
80 Fukushima Onahama 3.58E-02 1931 2007

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 2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

inclination
IV. RELATION BETWEEN THE OBSERVATION POINT AND THE color
[days/year]
INCREASING OR DECREASING TREND IN THE NUMBER OF over 0.2
0.1-0.2
LIGHTNING DAYS 0.0-0.1 Okunikko
-0.1-0.0
Figs. 23 to 31 show the increasing and decreasing trends in under -0.1
Utunomiya
the number of lightning days at each observation point on
color-coded maps. The colors red, orange, yellow, green, and Maebasi
blue represent regions with slopes of 0.2 days/year or more, Mito
0.1 to 0.2 days/year, 0 to 0.1 days/year, −0.1 to 0 days/year, Kumagaya
and less than −0.1 days/year, respectively. Maps were titibu
Thukuba

created by dividing the country into nine regions, namely,

Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kanto, Koshinetsu, Tokai, Kansai,
Choshi
Chugoku-Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. From Figs. 23 to Tokyo
Chiba
31, it is also clear that the regions that show a strong
increasing trend in the number of annual lightning days are Yokohama
the winter lightning regions on the coast of the Sea of Japan
from Tohoku to Chugoku. Besides the winter lightning Katuura

regions, other prefectures such as Kagoshima and Nara also Tateyama

showed a strong increasing trend in the number of annual
lightning days. Fig. 25. Kanto region

inclination
inclination color
color [days/year]
[days/year]
over 0.2
over 0.2
0.1-0.2
0.1-0.2
0.0-0.1 Aikawa
0.0-0.1
-0.1-0.0
-0.1-0.0 Niigata
under -0.1
under -0.1 Wakkanai

Kitamiesati Wajima
Ohmu
Takada
Hahoro Monbetu
Rumoi
Abashiri
Asahikawa Toyama Nagano
Otaru
Iwamizawa Nemuro Kanazawa
Suttu Karuizawa
Sapporo
Kushiro
Obihiro Mathumoto
Kuccahan Fukui
Suwa
Muroran
Hiroo
Esashi Urakawa Tsuruga
kohu
Hakodate iida
Kawagutiko

Fig. 23. Hokkaido region Fig. 26. Koshinetsu-Hokuriku region

inclination
inclination color
color [days/year]
[days/year] Mutu over 0.2
over 0.2
0.1-0.2
0.1-0.2
0.0-0.1 Takayama
0.0-0.1 Aomori
-0.1-0.0
-0.1-0.0 Fukaura
Hatinohe under -0.1
under -0.1

Akita Gifu
Miyako
Morioka

Nagoya Mishima

Ofunato
Sakata Yokkaichi
Amishiro
Shinjo Shizuoka

Ishimaki Ueno Tsu Hamamatsu

Irako
Sendai
Omaezaki Irouzaki
Yamagata

Fukushima
Owase
Wakamatsu

Shirakawa
Onahama

Fig. 24. Tohoku region Fig. 27. Tokai region

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 2015 Asia-Pacific International Conference on Lightning (APL), Nagoya, Japan

Toyooka Kumejima
Maizuru
Ibukiyama

Hikone

Kyoto

Nago
Himezi
inclination
color
[days/year] Yonagunijima
Koube Nara
Ohsaka over 0.2
0.1-0.2
0.0-0.1
Sumoto -0.1-0.0
Miyakojima
under -0.1
Wakayama

inclination
color
[days/year]
over 0.2 Naha
0.1-0.2 Iriomotejima
0.0-0.1
-0.1-0.0
Ishigakijima
under -0.1
Shiomisaki

Fig. 28. Kansai region Fig. 31. Okinawa region

Saigo
Sakai V. CONCLUSIONS
Yonago Tottori
Matsue Recently, reports of abnormal weather have increased in
media broadcasts, and interest in lightning among the
Hamada
Tsuyama general public has also increased. Bad news such as damage
to a windmill due to lightning two years ago and the death of
Okayama a boy playing baseball due to a lightning strike last year have
Hagi
Hiroshima Fukuyama widely circulated. With the development of an advanced
Takamatu
Yamaguti Kure information society, the vulnerability to lightning of
Tadotsu
Shimonoseki electronic devices used by people has increased in spite of
Tokushima the high performance of such devices. In the future, it is
Matsuyama
turugisan expected that the prevention of lightning damage will
color
inclination Kouti become an increasingly important issue. The data published
[days/year]
over 0.2
in this paper are not only for those who have specialized
Uwajima
0.1-0.2 Murotomisaki knowledge in lightning protection, but it is also a valuable
0.0-0.1
-0.1-0.0 Sukumo
document intended to make the general public focus on the
under -0.1
Shimizu increasing trend in the number of lightning days and to
Fig. 29. Chugoku-Shikoku region
recognize the importance of lightning protection.

REFERENCES
[1] “Lightning Protection for Electrical and Electronic Equipment,”
Iizuka
Institute of Electrical Insulation Engineering of Japan, Chiyoda-ku,
Fukuoka
Hirado Tokyo, Japan, Ohmsha, Ltd., ISBN 978-4-9902110-7-3, Aug. 2011.
Saga Hita
Sasebo Ohita [2] Japan Meteorological Agency: http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/index.html
Unsendake
Asozan
Fukue
Nagasaki Kumamoto
Nobeoka

Hitoyoshi
Ushibuka
Akune Miyazaki
Miyakonojo

Aburatsu
Kagoshima

inclination Makurazaki
color
[days/year]
over 0.2
0.1-0.2
0.0-0.1 Tanegashima
-0.1-0.0
under -0.1 Yakushima

Fig. 30. Kyushu region

825