Abstract
THE nature of ions in air has been a subject of study for more than thirty years, but our information is still incomplete and a variety of phenomena still require elucidation. A certain amount of information on the nature of ions in the lower atmosphere may be gained from a study of their motion in an electric field. Except in special cases which rarely arise at ordinary pressures, the motion of an air ion through the air is analogous to the motion of a sphere falling through a viscous liquid. This motion is one of uniform velocity the value of which depends upon the radius of the sphere, the force acting upon it, and the viscosity of the liquid. For a given force and medium, the larger the sphere the slower it moves. This may readily be demonstrated in a syrupy liquid by dropping into it two balls, one of lead and the other of aluminium, their relative sizes having been selected so that they have equal weights in the liquid.
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TYNDALL, A. Carriers of Electricity in the Atmosphere. Nature 122, 16–17 (1928). https://doi.org/10.1038/122016a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/122016a0
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