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Direct measurement of lower atmospheric vertical potential differencesA high impedance system has been developed to make direct measurements of the atmospheric potential difference up to several thousand feet. A tethered balloon flown from Wallops Island, Virginia was used to loft a high voltage, insulated wire and a conducting collector in a test flight to 550 meters for two days of experiments in October 1980. The balloon was equipped with a payload to measure exact altitude, wind speed and direction, and other meteorological parameters. Electric potentials of 170,000 volts at 550 meters were measured. The collected currents which could be drawn through the wire by grounding the lower end were in the 10 microamp range indicating a system impedance of about 10 to the 10th ohms. This paper describes the apparatus and details of these measurements.
Document ID
19810057006
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Holzworth, R. H.
(Aerospace Corp. Los Angeles, CA, United States)
Dazey, M. H.
(Aerospace Corp. Los Angeles, CA, United States)
Schnauss, E. R.
(Aerospace Corp. Space Sciences Laboratory, Los Angeles, CA, United States)
Youngbluth, O.
(NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 11, 2013
Publication Date
July 1, 1981
Publication Information
Publication: Geophysical Research Letters
Volume: 8
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Accession Number
81A41410
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAS6-3109
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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