Which most influences the amount of solar energy absorbed at the earth's surface?

Answer 1

There are many factors associated with the absorption of solar energy based primarily on the wavelength or nature of the solar energy under consideration. For example, neutrinos are mostly not absorbed at all. "Albedo" is used to express how much incident radiation from the Sun is reflected or absorbed, and the albedo changes for different wavelengths of light (electromagnetic radiation); it is a specific term of "reflectivity." In turn, albedo is determined by the cloud cover, terrestrial terrain, composition of the atmosphere etc. Longwave (red-shift) radiation absorption may be very different than UV (shortwave), and some wavelenghts may "bounce" completely, and very little of the incident radiation may be absorbed on the Earth's surface.

Answer 2

the amount of insolation received @ a given point on the earth's surface depends on the angle @ which the sun's rays strike the earth and the number of daylight hours. also the amount of water vapor in the air, the degree of cloud cover, the nature of the surface of the earth (land or water) the elevation above sea level, and the degree and direction of air movement. Not all potentially receivable solar radiation is stored. much of it is sent back to outer space or diffused in the troposphere.
A couple reasons I can think of are first what season we are in. As the Earth tilts on its axis different parts receive different amounts of sunlight. The next one I can think of would be latitude location because the further you are north or south from the equator the less light you receive because the suns rays generally travel further and hit the earth at an angle that causes them to cover more ground. The last one I can think of is the weather and smog conditions of an area.
it depends where you are on the glob.if you are near the equator you will receive more isolation than a location in the northern hemisphere. It also depends on the angel of which you are located.

Answer 3

Latitude and cloud cover. Higher latitudes get less sunlight, because the Sun is at such a low angle that the light is spread more thinly across the surface. And if there are clouds, then very little light will reach the surface.

Answer 4

The light from the sun travels in a straight line, and we can assume the light rays to be parellel. The angle of incidence on the earths rounded surface depends on where you are on the earth and what time it is. Mid-day on the equator and the rays would hit the ground straight on. Further to the north or south, or later/earlier in the day and the light rays would hit at more of angle. The rays would also have to penitrate more of the earths atmosphere as the angle increases, which takes more `strength` out of the sun.

Answer 5

The reflectivity, or albedo, of the surface. Snow and ice reflect most of the light that hits the Earth; plowed fields, being dark, reflect less. Black asphalt paving and roofs absorbs a lot, causing a "heat island" effect in and around cities. If everybody would paint their roofs white in the summertime, it would reflect a LOT of heat back into space. If the roads were made of concrete (light-colored) instead of asphalt (which is black), this would reflect even more.

Answer 6

clouds and atmosphere

Answer 7

angle of incidence of solar radiation