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oa Universal Constant of the Vertical Conduction Current Global Atmospheric Electrical Circuit
- Publisher: European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers
- Source: Conference Proceedings, 17th International Conference Monitoring of Geological Processes and Ecological Condition of the Environment, Nov 2023, Volume 2023, p.1 - 5
Abstract
A detailed analysis of the vertical characteristics (conductivity σ, electric field strength Ez, vertical current j) of the global atmospheric electrical circuit (GEC) was performed using three independent groups of data. It has been shown that atmospheric electricity has current-voltage characteristics with a hysteresis effect and has stratification. Even though the field dependences (j, σ, E z) are essentially nonlinear their ohmic combination (σE z)/j remains constant which goes beyond the concept of a material resistance constant in solid state physics. The linear relationship j=σE z, with an accuracy of 1–2% is locally observed for any height with conductivity and electric field strength varying significantly. In the vicinity of strata (dipole layers), the nonlinear behavior of the current-voltage characteristic for (σ, E z) has the form of a fold (zigzag returns), and for (j, E z) it has the form of a cusp (hysteresis loops). This type of vertical self-consistency of the GEC allows the linear relationship of Ohm’s nonlinear law to be satisfied and maintain the fair weather electric field for the entire Earth.
