PNNL

Abstract

The spectral changes of the total cloud radiative forcing (CRF) and its diffuse and direct components are examined by using spectrally resolved (visible spectral range) all-sky surface irradiances measured by Multi-Filter Rotating Shadowband Radiometer. We demonstrate: (i) the substantial contribution of the diffuse component to the total CRF, (ii) the well-defined spectral variations of total CRF in the visible spectral region, and (iii) the strong statistical relationship between spectral (500 nm) and shortwave broadband values of total CRF. Our results suggest that the framework based on the visible narrowband fluxes can provide important radiative quantities for rigorous evaluation of radiative transfer parameterizations and can be applied for estimation of the shortwave total CRF.