Abstract
It is shown that the mechanism of gravitation coagulation of aerosols due to different fall velocities is responsible for growth of charged aerosols and creation of electric currents in the atmosphere. Charging of aerosols results from collisions of water aerosols in different aggregate states, mostly graupels and ice particles. From the analysis of processes involving aerosols and observation data it follows that the average charge of aerosols is \(Z = (25-30) e\). Electric fields occur in the troposphere because falling velocities of positively and negatively charged aerosols are different. Charged aerosols of a cloud are located in a plasma that is formed under the action of cosmic rays and prevents clouds from expansion. Fluxes of wet hot air from Earth to clouds which are a precursor of thunderstorms cannot increase the aerosol mass remarkably because of heat processes. Removing a charge from aerosols accelerates their growth and causes rain. In prethunderstorm weather the low edge of a cumulus cloud contains charged aerosols, and there is a negative charge of a lower density of molecular negative ions that are located between a cloud and Earth.
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Smirnov, B.M. (2017). Atmospheric Processes Involving Aerosols. In: Microphysics of Atmospheric Phenomena. Springer Atmospheric Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30813-5_8
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