Publication Abstracts

Rossow 1993

Rossow, W.B., 1993: Satellite observation of radiation and clouds to diagnose energy exchanges in the climate: Part I. In Energy and Water Cycles in the Climate System. E. Raschke and D. Jacob, Eds., NATO ASI Series I: Global Environmental Change, vol. 5, Springer-Verlag, pp. 123-141, doi:10.1007/978-3-642-76957-3_5.

The basic energy cycle that establishes the climate of our planet is more complicated than a simple balance between the solar radiation (wavelengths from 0.4-4 µm) absorbed by Earth and the terrestrial radiation (wavelengths from 4-100 µm) emitted when the temperature of Earth reaches equilibrium. The first complication is that the spherical shape of Earth leads to an equator-to-pole difference in solar heating; the resulting temperature contrast forces motions in the atmosphere and ocean that transport some of the energy from low to high latitudes. Thus, the radiation balance at the top of the atmosphere exhibits a net heating (absorbed solar flux exceeds emitted terrestrial flux) at low latitudes and a net cooling (emitted terrestrial flux exceeds absorbed solar flux) at high latitudes which is balanced by the dynamic transports. However, the global average radiation is essentially in balance when averaged over a whole year. Thus, the solar and terrestrial radiative fluxes are the drivers for all of the phenomena we call climate.

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BibTeX Citation

@inproceedings{ro09400v,
  author={Rossow, W. B.},
  editor={Raschke, E. and Jacob, D.},
  title={Satellite observation of radiation and clouds to diagnose energy exchanges in the climate: Part I},
  booktitle={Energy and Water Cycles in the Climate System},
  year={1993},
  volume={5},
  pages={123--141},
  publisher={Springer-Verlag},
  address={Berlin},
  series={NATO ASI Series I: Global Environmental Change},
  doi={10.1007/978-3-642-76957-3_5},
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - CPAPER
ID  - ro09400v
AU  - Rossow, W. B.
ED  - Raschke, E.
ED  - Jacob, D.
PY  - 1993
TI  - Satellite observation of radiation and clouds to diagnose energy exchanges in the climate: Part I
BT  - Energy and Water Cycles in the Climate System
T3  - NATO ASI Series I: Global Environmental Change
VL  - 5
SP  - 123
EP  - 141
DO  - 10.1007/978-3-642-76957-3_5
PB  - Springer-Verlag
CY  - Berlin
ER  -

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