Using data from the ground-based magnetometer network and from nearly simultaneous observations with satellites Dynamics Explorer (DE) 1 and 2, an attempt is made to estimate the global distribution of electric fields and currents in the high-latitude ionosphere. For this purpose, the Rice model for ionospheric conductivity is modified to match spatially the aurora observed with DE 1. An optimum conductivity is then chosen iteratively so that the resultant electric fields become consistent with electric fields deduced from ion drifts measured along the DE 2 orbit. It is demonstrated that statistical conductivity models are not fully adequate for use with the magnetogram inversion technique when analyzing the large-scale electrodynamics of individual substorms. The auroral conductive belt in the empirical models needs to be shifted latitudinally and longitudinally to provide more realistic representations for various auroral forms, such as the westward traveling surge and the expanding poleward bulge. There is need for further work along these lines, but some important features are noted. It is found that singificant electric fields must exist to explain an intense auroral activity and the conductivity are quite low. The relative importance of the ionospheric conductance and the electric field in controlling the auroral electrojets is emphasized. The latitudinal distribution of the three quantities obtained from our example is grossly consistent wiht the statistical results of Foster (1987). ¿ American Geophysical Union 1989