Electric State of the Near-Surface Atmosphere according to the Results of Tethered Balloon Observations

Abstract

The electric state of the near-surface atmosphere up to a height of 400 m is investigated using a tethered balloon with a measuring platform and a ground-based information-measuring complex of the Borok middle-latitude geophysical observatory. For the first time, measurements were taken simultaneously for vertical profiles of the atmospheric electric field, polar electrical conductivities, size distribution of aerosol particles, and the volume activity of radon, which have allowed estimating the average values and variability of the space charge density and conduction current in the atmosphere. The height dependence of the electric potential with respect to the Earth’s surface and electrical resistance of the near-surface atmospheric column under different conditions of the temperature stratification is studied.