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Solar Radiation as a Factor in Arctic Weather and Climate (1048 words) |
 | About 50 percent of solar (or shortwave) radiation is reflected back into space, while the remaining shortwave radiation at the top of the atmosphere is absorbed by the earth's surface and re-radiated as thermal infrared (or longwave) radiation. |
| The intensity of solar radiation striking a horizontal surface is measured by a pyranometer. |
| Outgoing ("upwelling") longwave radiation is measured in various ways, such as with pyrgeometers or with sensors that measure the temperature of the surface. |
| Radiation and Atmospheric (2380 words) |
| The radiation balance between shortwave and longwave radiation depends on a combination of temperature, clouds, concentrations of water vapor, ozone, carbon dioxide, and aerosols. |
| Longwave radiative effects are determined to be a function of ground temperature, atmospheric temperature, specific humidity, and cloud amount (cloud amount is determined solely by relative humidity). |
| Shortwave radiation in the cloudy scheme focuses on the absorption and scattering properties of cloud droplets. |
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