Abstract:
Since the governing conditions of the human life style and the increasing air pollution on an average are related together, the state of ecological condition is
under some continuous changes. Therefore, the atmospheric electrical parameters such as atmospheric conductivity, air-earth current, atmospheric electric field and the ionospheric potential do not remain in a constant steady state at all the times. Many investigators studied the atmospheric electrical parameters through propagation of atmospherics (Harth, 1977, Singh, 1992), Lightning return strokes and whistlers (Hayakawa and Tanaka, 1978; Cooray 1992; Rai and Varshneya, 1982 and others), thunderstorm charge generation and separation mechanisms (Latham, 1989; Saunders, 1991 and others) and measurement of solar radiations (Tiwari, 1986; Agashe, 1991). However, Garg (1995) and Mahajan (1998) studied the properties of upper atmosphere
through satellite data analysis. The atmospheric electrical parameters influence
prominently the earth's environment. On the other hand, atmospheric electrical
parameters are affected by air pollution, earth's orography, various environmental
and meteorological factors and solar activity. It is, thus, important to study the variation in these electrical parameters in relation with ecological and environmental changes such as air pollution.
The atmospheric electrical parameters can be studied in two different areas, the fair-weather region and the disturbed weather region with two types of
variations in electrical parameters, i.e. (1) global in nature and (2) local. Since both the variations usually interact and overlap, 'their separation presents
considerable difficulties. Therefore, quantitative analysis on the atmospheric electrical parameters comprising both the small scale and large scale features with due consideration to earth's environment and air pollution is lacking.
