Measurements of the Atmospheric Electric Current Density by a Passive Horizontal Ring Antenna in the Surface Layer: Electrostatic Approximation

We study analytically and numerically the relationships for a passive horizontal ring antenna, which is used as a collector for long-term observatory measurements of the atmospheric electric current density. The spatial distributions of the potential and the electric field as functions of the geometric characteristics of the antenna, which is located in a uniform atmospheric electric field, are determined in the electrostatic approximation and the parameters of the atmosphericion motion in the neighborhood of the antenna are calculated. The effective collecting area of the antenna is determined by two different methods. The time of deposition of the atmospheric ions with a given mobility on the collector as a function of the impact parameter and the initial height, which is determined by this parameter, is established. The results of direct measurements of the atmospheric electric current density by a collector are compared with the results of synchronous observations of the atmospheric electric field and the electrical conductivity in the surface layer.