Summary
Statements are challenged which have been made by several authors (including an earlier one by myself) on existence and magnitude of a net electric charge on the earth, both as the solid and liquid “globe”, and as a “planet” including the atmosphere. Various attempts to estimate such a charge are being brieflky investigated. None of these will succeed because the needed magnitudes cannot easily be obtained by measurements or sound estimates. A potential to deduce maximum and minimum values of a net charge in both cases is mentioned; such an attempt would require simplifications and assumptions which are difficult to arrive at and to validate.—A relatively simple formula for the electric surface charge at the border between two media, which both are neither ideal “conductors” nor ideal “insulators”, was derived from Poisson's formula.
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Abbreviations
- A :
-
area [m2]
- A n :
-
unit area=1 m2
- Δ:
-
difference
- ɛ:
-
capacitivity (permittivity, dielectric constant) [F/m]
- ε0 :
-
“absolute” capacitivity of vacuum [F/m]
- ε1 :
-
relative capacitivity of medium 1 [1]
- i :
-
current density [A/m2]
- i n :
-
average current density through area n [A/m2]
- I :
-
current [A]
- E :
-
electric field intensity [V/m] or [N/C]
- γ:
-
conductivity [Ω−1 m−1]
- q‴ :
-
space charge density [C/m3]
- q″ :
-
surface charge density [C/m2]
- Q″ :
-
surface charge [C]
- Σ:
-
summation
- τ:
-
time constant [s]
- 0:
-
vacuum
- 1:
-
medium 1
- 2:
-
medium 2
- n :
-
denotes area unit
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Dolezalek, H. Discussion on the Earth's net electric charge. Meteorl. Atmos. Phys. 38, 240–245 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01054576
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01054576