Atmospheric electricity and earthquake prediction

Abstract

There are experimental indications that the release of radon from the ground may increase substantially before an earthquake. Illustrative calculations suggest that the observed increases would have appreciable effects on the parameters of atmospheric electricity. Typically, the fair weather conductivity near the ground would increase by some 50%, while the electric field (potential gradient) would decrease by about 30%. These alterations might be readily detectable in areas where the atmospheric electrical climate is largely unaffected by naturally disturbed weather, and where temporal changes in the electrical parameters, whether due to natural or to man‐made causes, are repetitive and therefore easily distinguishable from an earthquake effect.