Skip to main content

The Earth's Electrical Environment (1986) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:


Pages 115-115

The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.


From page 115...
... In this electric environment there are several ion capture mechanisms that lead to charged droplets in shallow cumulus clouds. In the following discussion, microscale charge separation is described for diffusion charging, drift charging, and selective ion charging.
Read the entire page →

Key Terms

  • cloud stage
  • electric field
  • charge separation
  • boundary layer
  • negative charge

  • ion capture
  • space charge
  • lower atmosphere
  • water droplets
  • cloud droplets

  • negative ions
  • drift charging
  • relaxation time
  • selective ion
  • cumulus cloud

  • positive ions
  • current density
  • cumulus clouds
  • ion charging


    • This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
    More information on Chapter Skim is available.