Solar radiation scattering

One can thus estimate the total light intensity incident on a given volume of air in the troposphere due to direct solar radiation, scattering, and reflection. The light absorbed in that volume can then be calculated... 

Figure 7. Fraction of direct solar radiation scattered by molecular constituents of the atmosphere (Rayleigh scattering) as a function of wavelength.

Much of the concern about particulate matter in the atmosphere arises because particles of certain size ranges can be inhaled and retained by the human respiratory system. There is also concern because particulate matter in the atmosphere absorbs and scatters incoming solar radiation. For a detailed discussion of the human respiratory system and the defenses it provides against exposure of the lungs to particulate matter, see Chapter 7. 

At angles away from the zenith, solar radiation must penetrate a greater thickness of the atmosphere. Consequently, it can encounter more scattering due to the presence of particles and greater absorption due to this greater thickness. 

A non-uegligible fraction of the solar radiation incident on the earth is lost by reflection from the top of the atmosphere and tops of clouds back into outer space. For the radiation penetrating the earth s atmosphere, some of the incident energy is lost due to scattering or absorption by air molecules, clouds, dust and aerosols. The radiation that reaches the earth s surface... 

The amount of solar radiation that reaches any point on the ground is extremely variable. As it passes through the atmosphere, 25 to 50 percent of the incident energy is lost due to reflection, scattering nr absorption. Even on a cloud-free day about 30 percent is lost, and only 70 percent of 1,367 W/nf, or 960 W/m, is available at the earth s surface. One must also take into account the earth s rotation and the resultant day-night (diurnal) cycle. If the sun shines 50 percent of the time (twelve hours per day, every day) on a one square meter surface, that surface receives no more than (960 W/m ) X (12 hours/day) X (365 days/year) =... 

As discussed in Chapter 3, solar radiation passing through the atmosphere to the earth s surface is both scattered and absorbed by gases and particles. The intensity of radiation striking the surface can be expressed in the form of a Beer-Lambert law ... 

However, this is not the case for airborne particles composed of crustal materials formed by erosion processes. As discussed in Chapter 9.C, mineral dust consists primarily of such crustal materials. Despite the fact that soil dust particles tend to be quite large, of the order of a micron and larger, they can be carried large distances. These particles not only scatter and absorb solar radiation but also absorb long-wavelength infrared emitted by the earth s surface. 

Typical cloud albedos for thick clouds in the boundary layer are 0.5 over the ocean in midlatitudes i.e., half of the incoming solar radiation is scattered back out to space (Baker, 1997). This approximation, Eq. (JJ), illustrates why a change in the number of cloud droplets and their size affects the cloud albedo and hence the radiative forcing (see Problem 9). 

On the other hand, aerosol particles from anthropogenic activities tend to be concentrated over or near industrial regions in the continents. Because both the direct and indirect effects of particles are predominantly in terms of scattering solar radiation, their effects are expected primarily during the day. 

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