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At least 55 records · Page 3

Effect of cloud cover and surface type on earth's radiation budget derived from the first year of ERBE data

One year of ERBE data is analyzed for variations in outgoing LW and absorbed solar flux. Differences in land and ocean radiation budgets as well as differences between clear-sky and total scenes, including clouds, are studied. The variation of monthly average radiative parameters is examined for February 1985 through January 1986 for selected study regions and on zonal and global scales. ERBE results show significant seasonal variations in both outgoing LW and absorbed SW flux, and a pronounced difference between oceanic and continental surfaces. The main factors determining cloud radiative forcing in a given region are solar insolation, cloud amount, cloud type, and surface properties. The strongest effects of clouds are found in the midlatitude storm tracks over the oceans. Over much of the globe, LW warming is balanced by SW cooling. The annual-global average net cloud forcing shows that clouds have a net cooling effect on the earth for the year.

Gibson, G. G.↗

Plasma environment effects on K lines of astrophysical interest I. Atomic structure, radiative rates, and Auger widths of oxygen ions

Aims. In the context of black-hole accretion disks, the main goal of the present study is to estimate the plasma environment effects on the atomic structure and radiative parameters associated with the K-vacancy states in ions of the oxygen isonuclear sequence. Methods. We used a time-averaged Debye–Hückel potential for both the electron–nucleus and the electron–electron interactions implemented in the fully relativistic multiconfiguration Dirac–Fock (MCDF) method. Results. Modified ionization potentials, K thresholds, Auger widths, and radiative transition wavelengths and rates are reported for O I–O VII in plasma environments with electron temperature and density ranges 10(exp 5)−10(exp 7) K and 10(exp 18)−10(exp 22)/cu.cm.

J. Deprince↗

Science requirements for a global change technology initiative architecture trade study

Science requirements for a Global Change Technology Initiative (GCTI) Architecture Trade Study were established by reviewing and synthesizing results from recent studies. A scientific rationale was adopted and used to identify a comprehensive set of measurables and their priorities. Spatial and temporal requirements for a number of measurement parameters were evaluated based on results from several working group studies. Science requirements were defined using these study results in conjunction with guidelines for investigating global changes over a time scale of decades to centuries. Requirements are given separately for global studies and regional process studies. For global studies, temporal requirements are for sampling every 1 to 12 hours for atmospheric and radiation parameters and 1 day or more for most Earth surface measurements. Therefore, the atmospheric measurables provide the most critical drivers for temporal sampling. Spatial sampling requirements vary from 1 km for land and ocean surface characteristics to 50 km for some atmospheric parameters. Thus, the land and ocean surface parameters have the more significant spatial variations and provide the most challenging spatial sampling requirements.

Suttles, John T.↗

Science requirements for a global change technology architecture trade study

Science requirements for a global change technology initiative (GCTI) Architecture Trade Study were established by reviewing and synthesizing results from recent studies. A scientific rationale was adopted and used to identify a comprehensive set of measureables and their priorities. Spatial and temporal requirements for a number of measurement parameters were evaluated based on results from several working group studies. Science requirements were defined using these study results in conjunction with the guidelines for investigating global changes over a time scale of decades to centuries. Requirements are given separately for global studies and regional process studies. For global studies, temporal requirements are for sampling every 1 to 12 hours for atmospheric and radiation parameters and 1 day or more for most earth surface measurements. Therefore, the atmospheric measureables provide the most critical drivers for temporal sampling. Spatial sampling requirements vary from 1 km for land and ocean surface characteristics to 50 km for some atmospheric parameters. Thus, the land and ocean surface parameters have the more significant spatial variations and provide the most challenging spatial sampling requirements.

Suttles, John T.↗

The effect of clouds on the earth's radiation budget

The radiative fluxes from the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) and the cloud properties from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) over Indonesia for the months of June and July of 1985 and 1986 were analyzed to determine the cloud sensitivity coefficients. The method involved a linear least squares regression between co-incident flux and cloud coverage measurements. The calculated slope is identified as the cloud sensitivity. It was found that the correlations between the total cloud fraction and radiation parameters were modest. However, correlations between cloud fraction and IR flux were improved by separating clouds by height. Likewise, correlations between the visible flux and cloud fractions were improved by distinguishing clouds based on optical depth. Calculating correlations between the net fluxes and either height or optical depth segregated cloud fractions were somewhat improved. When clouds were classified in terms of their height and optical depth, correlations among all the radiation components were improved. Mean cloud sensitivities based on the regression of radiative fluxes against height and optical depth separated cloud types are presented. Results are compared to a one-dimensional radiation model with a simple cloud parameterization scheme.

Ziskin, Daniel↗

Derivation of Improved Surface and TOA Broadband Fluxes Using CERES-derived Narrowband-to-Broadband Coefficients

Satellites can provide global coverage of a number of climatically important radiative parameters, including broadband (BB) shortwave (SW) and longwave (LW) fluxes at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) and surface. These parameters can be estimated from narrowband (NB) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) data, but their accuracy is highly dependent on the validity of the narrowband-to-broadband (NB-BB) conversion formulas that are used to convert the NB fluxes to broadband values. The formula coefficients have historically been derived by regressing matched polarorbiting satellite BB fluxes or radiances with their NB counterparts from GOES (e.g., Minnis et al., 1984). More recently, the coefficients have been based on matched Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) and GOES-6 data (Minnis and Smith, 1998). The Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy Budget (CERES see Wielicki et al. 1998)) project has recently developed much improved Angular Distribution Models (ADM; Loeb et al., 2003) and has higher resolution data compared to ERBE. A limited set of coefficients was also derived from matched GOES-8 and CERES data taken on Topical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite (Chakrapani et al., 2003; Doelling et al., 2003). The NB-BB coefficients derived from CERES and the GOES suite should yield more accurate BB fluxes than from ERBE, but are limited spatially and seasonally. With CERES data taken from Terra and Aqua, it is now possible to derive more reliable NB-BB coefficients for any given area. Better TOA fluxes should translate to improved surface radiation fluxes derived using various algorithms. As part of an ongoing effort to provide accurate BB flux estimates for the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program, this paper documents the derivation of new NB-BB coefficients for the ARM Southern Great Plains (SGP) domain and for the Darwin region of the Tropical Western Pacific (DTWP) domain.

Khaiyer, Mandana M.↗

Diurnal and seasonal variations of clouds from geostationary satellite data

Hourly 8-km visible (0.55-0.75 micron) and infrared (10.5-12.5 microns) data from the eastern Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite were analyzed with a hybrid bispectral threshold method to yield total, low, middle, and high level cloud fractions and cloud radiative parameters for 250 x 250 sq km regions. These data were analyzed for the area between 45 deg N and 45 deg S, and longitudes 30 deg W and 125 deg W for the autumn of 1978 and the winter of 1979. Preliminary results for winter are presented in the present study. It is shown that diurnal variations of clouds may reveal diurnal variability in regional and large-scale circulation patterns. These diurnal cloud cycles may also have substantial effects on regional and large-scale radiation budgets and, therefore, influence circulation patterns at various spatial scales.

Minnis, P.↗

Characteristics of the earth's radiation budget derived from the first year of data from the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment

The first year of broadband Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) data is analyzed for top-of-the-atmosphere regional variations of outgoing longwave (LW) flux and planetary albedo for total scene as well as clear-sky conditions. The annual variation of radiative parameters is examined for February 1985 through January 1986 for selected regions, latitude zones, and the entire globe. Results show significant seasonal variations for both LW fluxes and albedo. A broad longwave flux maximum (with a relative minimum corresponding to the intertropical convergence zone in the middle) covers the tropics and the subtropics with its center moving about 20 deg in latitude between seasonal extremes. Minimum albedo (about 20 percent) occurs within 15 deg of the equator. In the tropics and midlatitudes, there is a tendency toward higher albedos during the summer. Larger albedos at the higher latitudes are caused by solar zenith angle effects and by increased snow and ice cover. Net warming occurs between 35 deg N and 35 deg S latitude near the equinoxes and in a 90-deg-wide latitude band at the solstices centered around 35 deg latitude in the summer hemisphere. This energy surplus at lower latitudes coupled with an energy deficit in the poleward regions is the primary driver of atmospheric circulations. For the year, the global net radiation is nearly in balance.

Gibson, G. G.↗

Unsteady, combined radiation and conduction in an absorbing, scattering, and emitting medium.

The transient cooldown of a gray, absorbing, isotropic scattering, emitting, and conducting medium bounded by gray, diffusely emitting and reflecting parallel plates is considered. Numerical solutions are obtained for the initial boundary-value problem with a discontinuous decrease in temperature at one boundary. The quasi-steady equation of radiative transfer is solved using Gaussian quadrature and a matrix eigenvector technique together with explicit numerical solution of the unsteady energy equation. Temperature and energy flux distributions are presented for variations of optical thickness, boundary emissivity, albedo, and conduction-radiation parameter.

Weston, K. C.↗

Feasibility of coherent X-ray production by X-ray pumping

It is suggested that coherent X-rays can be produced by inverting the electron population in a suitable target, such as Li, through irradiation with X-rays generated by fast electrons traversing an electromagnetic field (as in a storage ring). Conditions to be satisfied by target and radiation parameters are stated, and examples given.

Csonka, P. L.↗

Feasibility of coherent X-ray production by X-ray pumping

It is suggested that coherent soft X rays can be produced by inverting the electron population in a suitable target, such as Li, through irradiation with X rays generated by fast electrons traversing an electromagnetic field (as in a storage ring). Conditions to be satisfied by target and radiation parameters are stated, and examples given.

Csonka, P. L.↗

A fast, exact code for scattered thermal radiation compared with a two-stream approximation

A two-stream accuracy study for internally (thermal) driven problems is presented by comparison with a recently developed 'exact' adding/doubling method. The resulting errors in external (or boundary) radiative intensity and flux are usually larger than those for the externally driven problems and vary substantially with the radiative parameters. Error predictions for a specific problem are difficult. An unexpected result is that the exact method is computationally as fast as the two-stream approximation for nonisothermal media.

Cogley, A. C.↗

RAD hard PROM design study

The results of a preliminary study on the design of a radiation hardened fusible link programmable read-only memory (PROM) are presented. Various fuse technologies and the effects of radiation on MOS integrated circuits are surveyed. A set of design rules allowing the fabrication of a radiation hardened PROM using a Si-gate CMOS process is defined. A preliminary cell layout was completed and the programming concept defined. A block diagram is used to describe the circuit components required for a 4 K design. A design goal data sheet giving target values for the AC, DC, and radiation parameters of the circuit is presented.

Source record↗

The absorption of solar radiation by the Arctic atmosphere during the haze season and its effects on the radiation balance

Measurements of broadband spectral absorption of solar radiation by the Arctic atmosphere during haze events are reported. A preliminary analysis of the data indicates that large changes occur in the radiative transfer processes in the Arctic during haze events. For example, the planetary albedo is estimated to increase by 2.5 percent over the ocean and to decrease by 9 percent over the ice cap. Changes of such magnitude in the radiative parameters have the potential for significant climatic effects. The need for further experimental and modeling efforts is emphasized.

Valero, F. P. J.↗

Cloud cover sampling capability of various satellite combinations for ISCCP

One of the most important objectives of the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) is the quantification of cloud cover and associated radiation parameters for climate research. The time-varying nature of cloud cover requires a measurement system that obtains cloud radiance at sufficient time intervals for determining accurate values of cloudiness for the appropriate averaging period. Current plans for the ISCCP call for such day to be acquired every 3 hours during both data and night to ensure that the diurnal cycle of cloud cover is adequately sampled. The satellite system proposed is an array of geostationary and polar-orbiting satellites. The error in mean cloud cover estimates for observation systems which do not include geostationary satellites are quantified. Candidates for such a system include two NOAA Sun-synchronous satellites with daylight equatorial-crossing times of 0730 and 1430, and a USSR satellite in an 81 deg. inclination, 900-km altitude orbit.

Harrison, E. F.↗

An intercalibration of Meteosat-1 and GOES-2 visible and infrared measurements

An intercomparison between radiative parameters determined from visible and infrared channels of the Meteosat-1 and GOES-2 geosynchronous satellites has been carried out using data obtained over the central Atlantic Ocean for 5 November 1978. Hourly visible-infrared measurement pairs at a nominal resolution of 5 km (Meteosat) or 8 km (GOES) have been stored in 1 deg x 1 deg longitude-latitude regions. For the infrared intercomparisons, the GOES 11.5 micron radiance has been compared to Meteosat infrared counts. The scatter in partly cloudy regions is interpreted as being caused by meteorological differences arising from differences in measurement time between the two data sets. For the visible intercomparison, the GOES measurements for clear and cloudy scenes have first been converted with the aid of scene-dependent angular reflectance and albedo models to estimates of the filtered shortwave radiance that GOES would have measured had it been in the Meteosat position. This value has then been compared to Meteosat counts for the shortwave channel. The results indicate that earlier Meteosat calibrations made from airplane overflights of a limited variety of surfaces are applicable to much larger areas of cloud and ocean.

Brooks, D. R.↗

Radiatively driven winds from magnetic, fast-rotating stars - Wolf-Rayet stars?

An analytical procedure is developed to solve the MHD equations for a stellar wind in the strong-magnetic-field, optically thick limit for hot stars. The slow-mode, Alfven, and fast-mode critical points are modified by the radiation terms in the force equation but in a manner that can be easily treated. Once the velocities and distances are known at the critical points, the streamline constants are determined in a straight-forward manner. This shows the structure of the wind with a relatively simple numerical scheme. The magnetic field and a radiation parameter specify the terminal wind velocity. High rotation rates and a modified slow-mode critical point close to the stellar surface determine the high mass-loss rates. Wolf-Rayet stars are modeled with 1000-G fields but require stellar rotational velocities approaching breakup values. The physical conditions that correspond to Wolf-Rayet models are so rare that another mechanism must be operating in these winds.

Nerney, Steven↗