3

The Coupling

of Atmospheric

Electromagnetic Fields

with Biological Systems

3.1

Introduction ...................................................................................... 105

3.2

Atmospheric and Cosmic Environments...................................... 106

3.3

Natural Background Fields ............................................................. 108

Lightning • Electromagnetic Fields and Resonance

3.4

Natural Electromagnetic Fields and Biological Systems.............116

Electromagnetic Fields and Humans • Circadian Rhythm in Human

and Vertebrates

3.5

Atmospheric Electricity and Biological Systems ......................... 123

Static Electric Field in Humans and Others • Static Electric Field in

Vertebrates and Invertebrates

3.6

Detection of Electromagnetic Fields.............................................. 129

Tsukasa Shigemitsu

Electroreception • Magnetoreception

3.7

Discussion..........................................................................................136

Shoogo Ueno

References...................................................................................................... 138

3.1 Introduction

People live in an environment where there is always electromagnetic radiation from natural sources.

Natural sources include the sun which produces radiation in the range from visible light, infrared (IR)

to ultraviolet (UV), the earth which generates a magnetic feld in its core, the atmospheric related to

lightning strikes, and cosmic phenomena. As a result of the development of civilization, people began to

produce man-made electromagnetic felds about 150 years ago. Tese electromagnetic felds ft into the

existing spectrum of the natural electromagnetic radiation.

Life on earth evolved in the sunlight and began to perceive light. Within the spectrum of the sun,

people perceive light in the visible region of wavelengths (0.38–0.78 μm) as natural light. Afer Newton

frst decomposed light into seven colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet) in 1672, the

existence of infrared and UV light also became known. In the case of spectroscopy of light, the thermal

action of red is greater than that of blue. Furthermore, infrared light, which has a strong thermal action,

was discovered by Herschel in 1800. Ritter found in 1801 that UV light has a chemical efect.

As mentioned above, the sun produces electromagnetic radiations in the range from the UV, through

visible light to infrared region (IR), called optical radiation. About 45% of radiation falls within vis­

ible region of wavelengths. Te UV region is from below 0.10 to around 0.40 μm which is subdivided

DOI: 10.1201/9781003181354-3

105