Question

Which factor is responsible for large variations in irradiation among different location on earth?

Answer 1

While the solar radiation incident on the Earth's atmosphere is relatively constant, the radiation at the Earth's surface varies widely due to:

atmospheric effects, including absorption and scattering;

local variations in the atmosphere, such as water vapour, clouds, and pollution;

latitude of the location; and

the season of the year and the time of day.

The above effects have several impacts on the solar radiation received at the Earth's surface. These changes include variations in the overall power received, the spectral content of the light and the angle from which light is incident on a surface. In addition, a key change is that the variability of the solar radiation at a particular location increases dramatically. The variability is due to both local effects such as clouds and seasonal variations, as well as other effects such as the length of the day at a particular latitude. Desert regions tend to have lower variations due to local atmospheric phenomena such as clouds. Equatorial regions have low variability between seasons.