Development and Applications of a New, Low-Power,Low-Maintenance Electric-Field Meter for Research and Hazard-Warning Decision Support
The CS110 electric-field meter employs numerous innovations that make it suitable for economical deployment on remote solar-powered meteorological stations for lightning hazard-warning decision support and for thunderstorm research. Measurements of atmospheric electric field have been made for these purposes for decades, but past deployments have been limited because the cost to acquire, install, operate, and maintain electric field mills has been relatively high. The new instrument uses a reciprocating shutter to cover and uncover the sense electrodes, offering numerous advantages over the conventional system of rotating vanes employed in field mills. The problematic rotating, slipping electrical contact by brushes or slip rings has been eliminated in favor of a flexible grounding strap, reducing noise and wear. Low power consumption and low noise are achieved because the motor is energized only for very short periods of time rather than continuously, and not at the time when measurements are taken. An embedded data logger provides control and communications, affording flexibility in user choices of measurement rates, averaging techniques, alarm conditions, and instrument configuration, including a slow antenna option. Automatic DC measurement-error compensation, self-diagnostic and error-correcting features increase accuracy and reduce maintenance costs. Capability for additional sensors for wind speed and direction, air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, and rainfall is built in. We discuss the principal features that set the design of this instrument apart from that of previous field meters as well as some typical applications.
William H. Beasley Leon G. Byerley Jody A. Swenson Alan L. Hinckley Ivan G. Bogoev
School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73072-7307 Lightning Protection Technology, Tucson, AZ 85716 Campbell Scientific, Inc., Logan, UT 84321
国际会议
第13届国际大气电学会议(The 13th International Conference on Atmospheric Electricity)
北京
英文
2007-08-13（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）