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Is 20 percent of the sun's energy absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds?
Wiki User
∙ 6y ago
It's possible to calculate it accurately. The Sun's power at the Earth's distance causes the Earth to intercept power over a circular area that is presented to the Sun, with a diameter equal to the diameter of the Earth, 12750 km, that's an area of 127 million square km.
The same power density also occurs everywhere on a sphere centred on the Sun and with a radius of 149.6 million km (the average Earth-Sun distance). That sphere has an area of 2.81 x 1017 square km.
The ratio you want is the ratio of those two areas, 1.27 x 108 / 2.81 x 1017 which is 4.52 x 10-10 so as a percentage it is 0.0000000452%.
Comment. That's a good answer, but it needs a bit more:
Only about 58% of the Sun's energy from the top of the atmosphere actually reaches the Earth's surface.
So, the final answer is about 0.000000026 %.
Also, the question is probably just be about how much reaches the surface from the top of the atmosphere. In that case the answer is simply: about 58 per cent.
A bit is reflected, but about 50% is absorbed by the Earth's surface.
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoOn the side of Earth facing the Sun, a square kilometer at the outer edge of our atmosphere receives 1,400 megawatts of solar power every minute, which is about the capacity of the largest electric generating plant in Nevada. Only about half of that amount, however, reaches Earth's surface.
Comment: I guess the question must mean the Earth'ssurface.
Otherwise the answer would be 100%.
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoMy numbers are approximate from text books. The Sun is said to emit 3.8 x 10^26 watts (joules per second).
Using the radius of the Earth and the "Solar Constant" the amount of energy that the Earth gets from the Sun is about 1.8 x 10^17 watts.
This would equate to: 0.000000047% of the energy that reaches the outside of our atmosphere.
30% of this 1.8 x 10^17 watts is reflected back into space. So, just using the amount that is not reflected back into space (i.e 5.4 x 10^16) we would say that Earth absorbs 0.000000014 % of the energy radiated by the Sun in some way or another.
It's hard to say whether this reaches the "surface" because half of this turns into heat which does not necessarily reach the "surface" (grounds and oceans) and some of the rest is transformed by use of other Earthly things (winds/currents, plants etc)
Comment: It's reckoned that just over half the incoming radiation (from the top of the atmosphere) reaches the Earth's surface. So, that would give an answer of about 0.000000025% reaching the surface.
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoone third
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago30
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What percentage of the sun energy that reaches earth is absorbed by earth surface?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
How is 34 percent of the energy from the sun reflected off the troposphere?
About 26% of incoming solar radiation is reflected back into space from the clouds and atmosphere. Another 16% is absorbed by the atmosphere.Incoming solar radiation: 100%Reflected by the atmosphere: 6% : Absorbed by the atmosphere: 16%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 78%Reflected by clouds: 20% : Absorbed by clouds: 3%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 55%Reflected by the earth's surface: 4% : Absorbed by the earth's surface (lands and oceans): 51%
What percent of the Sun's energy intercepted by the Earth is absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds?
This Answer is as Variable, considering all of the varying Parameters, as it is Crucial to Our Tenuous Situation. This percentage, as Critical as it is, in not predictable as the Output of Solar radiation is as unknowable as the powerful Incidence of detrimental Cosmic Rays.
How much of solar energy that falls on the leaves of a plant is converted to chemical energy by photosynthesis?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
How much solar energy is reflected by the atmosphere and earth's surface?
About 6% of incoming solar radiation is reflected back into space from the atmosphere and 4% by the surface of the earth.Incoming solar radiation: 100%Reflected by the atmosphere: 6% : Absorbed by the atmosphere: 16%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 78%Reflected by clouds: 20% : Absorbed by clouds: 3%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 55%Reflected by the earth's surface: 4% : Absorbed by the earth's surface (lands and oceans): 51%
What percentage of the sun's energy that reaches earth is absorbed by the earth's surface?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
What percentage of the suns energy that reaches the earth is absorbed by earth surface?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
What percentage of the sun energy that reaches earth is absorbed by earth surface?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
The atmosphere is heated chiefly by radiation emitted by Earth?
The atmosphere is heated chiefly by radiation from Earth's surface rather than by direct solar radiation because about 50 percent of the solar energy is absorbed at Earth's surface. 30 percent is reflected back to space. 20 percent is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere's gases.
What percentage of the sun's energy that reaches the earth's is absorbed by ozone clouds and atmosphere gases?
50
What happens to most of the sunlight that reaches Earth?
About 50% is absorbed by Earth's surface, about 25% is reflected by clouds, dust, and gases in the atmosphere, about 20% is absorbed by gases and particles in the atmosphere and about 5% is reflected by the surface back into the atmosphere. Also some absorbed energy is radiated back into the atmosphere.
How is 34 percent of the energy from the sun reflected off the troposphere?
About 26% of incoming solar radiation is reflected back into space from the clouds and atmosphere. Another 16% is absorbed by the atmosphere.Incoming solar radiation: 100%Reflected by the atmosphere: 6% : Absorbed by the atmosphere: 16%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 78%Reflected by clouds: 20% : Absorbed by clouds: 3%Continuing incoming solar radiation: 55%Reflected by the earth's surface: 4% : Absorbed by the earth's surface (lands and oceans): 51%
What percent of the Sun's energy intercepted by the Earth is absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds?
This Answer is as Variable, considering all of the varying Parameters, as it is Crucial to Our Tenuous Situation. This percentage, as Critical as it is, in not predictable as the Output of Solar radiation is as unknowable as the powerful Incidence of detrimental Cosmic Rays.
How much of solar energy that falls on the leaves of a plant is converted to chemical energy by photosynthesis?
About 50 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by the Earth's surface. In addition, about 9 percent is reflected.About 22 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is reflected by clouds and the atmosphere.About 19 percent of the Sun's incoming energy is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere.
What is the amount of solar energy that is absorbed in gasses clouds and ozone?
The solar energy that is absorbed in gasses clouds and ozone is little. The UV spectrum is absorbed.
What percent of the suns heat can clouds absorb on cloudy days?
About 6% of the shortwave energy that comes from the sun is actually absorbed by clouds on a cloudy day.
How does the atmosphere reflect energy?
Some sunlight is absorbed or reflected by the atmosphere before it can reach the surfaces.
