MONITORING EARTH’S CLIMATE SYSTEM

&

PLANETARY ENERGY BUDGET

Spatial and Temporal Scales of ClimateClimate Anomalies

Climate ObservationsIn Situ

Remote SensingSatellite Observations

Climate Models

Radiation LawsSolar Radiation-sun-Earth relationships

Atmospheric Effects on InsolationOzone Depletion

Greenhouse EffectNet Radiation, Equilibrium, Climate Change

Anomaly: deviation from the mean

VISIBLE IMAGE APRIL 12, 2010

INFRARED IMAGE APRIL 12, 2010

WATER VAPOR IMAGE 4/12/10

http://climate.nasa.gov/Eyes/eyes.html

NASA’s Suite of Orbiting Earth Observing Satellites

CLIMATE FORECASTING

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

Figure 2.6

Solar and Terrestrial Energy

Figure 2.7

Wien’s Law

Stefan-Boltzmann Law

Equinox, Solstices

Seasonal Observations

Figure 2.15

Daylength vs. Latitude

SOLAR CONSTANT

The rate at which solar radiation falls on a flat unit area perpendicular to the sun’s

rays at the top of the atmosphere.

1.97 cal/cm2/min

1368 W/m2

ATMOSPHERIC EFFECTS ON SOLAR RADIATION,

TERRESTRIAL RADIATION

REFLECTION

SCATTERING

ABSORPTION

Albedo and Reflection

Figure 3.5

Antarctic Ozone Hole

Figure FS 2.1.1

Greenhouse effect

Mauna Loa Carbon Dioxide Measurements

(the Keeling Curve)