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The interaction between cloud formation and climate change is an aspect of atmospheric science. Clouds have a dual role [6] in the Earth's climate system: they can cool the Earth's surface by reflecting incoming solar radiation (albedo effect) and warm it by trapping outgoing infrared radiation (greenhouse effect). The overall impact of clouds ...
The altitude, form, and thickness of the clouds are the main factors that affect the local heating or cooling of the Earth and the atmosphere. Clouds that form above the troposphere are too scarce and too thin to have any influence on climate change. Clouds are the main uncertainty in climate sensitivity. [2]
Details of how clouds interact with shortwave and longwave radiation at different atmospheric heights [17]. Clouds have two major effects on the Earth's energy budget: they reflect shortwave radiation from sunlight back to space due to their high albedo, but the water vapor contained inside them also absorbs and re-emits the longwave radiation sent out by the Earth's surface as it is heated by ...
the cloud IR emissivity, with values between 0 and 1, with a global average around 0.7; the effective cloud amount, the cloud amount weighted by the cloud IR emissivity, with a global average of 0.5; the cloud (visible) optical depth varies within a range of 4 and 10. the cloud water path for the liquid and solid (ice) phases of the cloud particles
In the 2001 IPCC report possible changes in cloud cover were highlighted as a major uncertainty in predicting climate. [28] [29] Climate researchers around the world use climate models to understand the climate system. Thousands of papers have been published about model-based studies. Part of this research is to improve the models.
Cloud albedo has substantial influence over atmospheric temperatures. Different types of clouds exhibit different reflectivity, theoretically ranging in albedo from a minimum of near 0 to a maximum approaching 0.8. "On any given day, about half of Earth is covered by clouds, which reflect more sunlight than land and water.
Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) is an on-going NASA climatological experiment from Earth orbit. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] The CERES are scientific satellite instruments, part of the NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS), designed to measure both solar-reflected and Earth-emitted radiation from the top of the atmosphere (TOA) to the Earth's ...
Clouds form as relatively warmer air carrying moisture rises within cooler air. As the moist air rises, it cools, causing some of the water vapor in the rising packet of air to condense . [ 4 ] When the moisture condenses, it releases energy known as the latent heat of vaporisation, which allows the rising packet of air to cool less than its ...