Langmuir Lab lightning study cable

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Peter Komen by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <pkomen-at-zianet-dot-com>

I asked about the cable across the canyon at Langmuir and received this
response:
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Pete,

The cable, which was used for charge release experiments (see Moore, C.B.,
et al.,1986, Abnormal polarity of thunderclouds grown from negatively
charged air, Science 233, 1413-1416) was lowered to tree-top level in
Sawmill Canyon for many years after its last use.  Over the last couple
of years it has been removed, at great trouble.  It was cut or broken in
a few places, so that some of the ends had to be reconnected.  Then the
pieces were pulled up from the canyon using a crane and a bulldozer.

I've attached a photo showing part of the operation.

It is briefly mentioned on the web site in the old 1979 Langmuir Lab
brochure: 

    A steel cable 12 mm (1/2 inch) in diameter crosses Sawmill Canyon 
    with a single span of 2000 m (6,500 ft.).  This cable was installed by
    S. A. Colgate and C. B. Moore with NSF support for lightning strike
    studies and for charge release experiments aimed at the artificial
    electrification of clouds. Ceramic and glass fiber insulators at the
    two supporting towers isolate the cable from Earth. A 150-kV power
    supply is attached to the cable for the charge release experiments
    and a 2-m spark gap is used for the lightning strike studies.

Let me know if you have further questions.

-Sandy Kieft

Sandra M. Kieft      <mailto:kieft-at-nmt.edu>kieft-at-nmt.edu       phone:  
505-835-5423
 /\-/\     Office Manager and Field Program Coordinator
| 0 0 |    New Mexico Tech - Langmuir Laboratory
 \ -at- /     801 Leroy Place
   U       Socorro,  NM  87801              fax:   505-835-5913
                  
<http://www.ee.nmt.edu/~langmuir/>http://www.ee.nmt.edu/~langmuir/

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I did not include the picture.  See the Langmuir site (address above) for
pictures of the Lab.
 
Note the 2 meter spark gap!
 
Regards,
 
Pete Komen