Modeling surface solar irradiance for satellite applications on a global scale

Abstract

An early version of a physical model was modified and expanded to derive surface solar irradiance from satellite observations. The model is based on radiative transfer theory, and can produce both direct and diffuse spectral components in the 0.2-4.0-micron interval. Attention is given to the absorption and scattering processes in the atmosphere and the interaction of radiation with the surface. The bidirectional nature of the exiting radiation at the top of the atmosphere is also accounted for. In this paper the emphasis will be on describing the current status of the model and its implementation on a global scale with the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project C1 data.