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Image shows annual distribution of lightning. the high latitudes are not covered. there is very little lightning over water, most lightning is over land. The most frequent lightning is seen over the central and southeast US, south-central South America, Central Africa, along the monsoon path in upper India and over islands on the western Pacific and Eastern Indioan ocean near the Tropics.
Annual lightning distribution
Total annual lighting detected from the Lightning Imaging Sensor on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite in 2009.
NASA/MSFC