1.Overall, Earth reflects about 29% of the incoming solar radiation, and therefore, we say the Earth's average albedo is 0.29. Snow and ice, airborne particles, and certain gases have high albedos and reflect different amounts of sunlight back into space.
2.The sun's radiation strikes the ground, thus warming the rocks. As the rock's temperature rises due to conduction, heat energy is released into the atmosphere, forming a bubble of air which is warmer than the surrounding air. This bubble of air rises into the atmosphere.
3.Water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and other trace gases in Earth's atmosphere absorb the longer wavelengths of outgoing infrared radiation from Earth's surface. These gases then emit the infrared radiation in all directions, both outward toward space and downward toward Earth.
4.Molecules of carbon dioxide (CO2) can absorb energy from infrared (IR) radiation. This animation shows a molecule of CO2 absorbing an incoming infrared photon (yellow arrows). The energy from the photon causes the CO2 molecule to vibrate.
5.The earth and its atmosphere emit infrared radiation with wavelengths longer than those of solar radiation because their temperature is lower than that of the sun's surface. Most of the energy of the infrared radiation emitted from the earth and its atmosphere is concentrated in the 3 - 100 μm range.
6.The earth and its atmosphere emit infrared radiation with wavelengths longer than those of solar radiation because their temperature is lower than that of the sun's surface. Most of the energy of the infrared radiation emitted from the earth and its atmosphere is concentrated in the 3 - 100 μm range.
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ANSWER
1.Overall, Earth reflects about 29% of the incoming solar radiation, and therefore, we say the Earth's average albedo is 0.29. Snow and ice, airborne particles, and certain gases have high albedos and reflect different amounts of sunlight back into space.
2.The sun's radiation strikes the ground, thus warming the rocks. As the rock's temperature rises due to conduction, heat energy is released into the atmosphere, forming a bubble of air which is warmer than the surrounding air. This bubble of air rises into the atmosphere.
3.Water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and other trace gases in Earth's atmosphere absorb the longer wavelengths of outgoing infrared radiation from Earth's surface. These gases then emit the infrared radiation in all directions, both outward toward space and downward toward Earth.
4.Molecules of carbon dioxide (CO2) can absorb energy from infrared (IR) radiation. This animation shows a molecule of CO2 absorbing an incoming infrared photon (yellow arrows). The energy from the photon causes the CO2 molecule to vibrate.
5.The earth and its atmosphere emit infrared radiation with wavelengths longer than those of solar radiation because their temperature is lower than that of the sun's surface. Most of the energy of the infrared radiation emitted from the earth and its atmosphere is concentrated in the 3 - 100 μm range.
6.The earth and its atmosphere emit infrared radiation with wavelengths longer than those of solar radiation because their temperature is lower than that of the sun's surface. Most of the energy of the infrared radiation emitted from the earth and its atmosphere is concentrated in the 3 - 100 μm range.