TESTING AND FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF AN ELECTRONIC CLOUD DETECTOR

An electrostatic sensor for use on weather radiosonde has been designed to detect boundaries of stratified clouds. A vertical dipole antenna senses the displacement current due to the vertical velocity of the balloon and the change of the atmospheric electric field at cloud boundaries. The electroni...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: RUHNKE,Lothar H
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
ATMOSPHERIC ELECTRICITY
ATMOSPHERIC MOTION
CIRCUITS
CLOUDS
DIPOLE ANTENNAS
ELECTRIC FIELDS
ELECTROMAGNETIC PROBES
ELECTROMETERS
ELECTROSTATICS
METEOROLOGICAL BALLOONS
METEOROLOGICAL INSTRUMENTS
RADIOSONDES
TRANSDUCERS
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Summary:An electrostatic sensor for use on weather radiosonde has been designed to detect boundaries of stratified clouds. A vertical dipole antenna senses the displacement current due to the vertical velocity of the balloon and the change of the atmospheric electric field at cloud boundaries. The electronic circuitry consists of a solid-state electrometer with 10 to the 10th powerohm input resistance acting as a voltage resistance transducer. The circuit is simple and inexpensive; it contains no batteries or components with limited shelf life. A manned hot-air balloon was employed several times to correlate visual and electrical observations. Turbulence in clear air produces electric field fluctuations, which, to a minor degree, affect the recordings. Of concern also were undulation movements of neoprene balloons with short leader lines. Flight results show good agreement with visual observations and Weather Bureau reports. (Author) Available copy will not permit fully legible reproduction. Reproduction will be made if requested by users of DDC. Copy is available for public sale.