WWLLN-Observed Lightning Multiplicity in Colombia during 2015–2025: A National Climatology

A spatiotemporal DBSCAN procedure reconstructed 55,401,292 flashes from 84,391,470 WWLLN-detected strokes over Colombia during 2015–2025. Observed multiplicity was strongly right-skewed, with a mean of 1.523 detected strokes per reconstructed flash, a median of one, and a 95th percentile of four. Although reconstructed-flash occurrence exhibited a pronounced bimodal seasonal cycle, mean multiplicity showed no significant long-term trend and reached its annual maximum in October. Furthermore, the apparent monthly association between occurrence and multiplicity disappeared after adjustment for month and year, indicating that the two metrics capture different aspects of lightning activity. This distinction was also evident spatially, as the Pacific region exhibited the highest continental mean multiplicity, whereas the Andean region had the highest area-normalized reconstructed-flash occurrence. Multiplicities greater than 10 strokes per flash had a negligible influence on the national mean. Collectively, these findings establish a national baseline of detection-limited WWLLN-observedmultiplicity, while recognizing that weak subsequent strokes may remain undetected.