What is global radiative forcing?
Radiative forcing is the change in the net, downward minus upward, radiative flux (expressed in W m− 2) at the tropopause or top of atmosphere due to a change in an external driver of climate change such as a change in the concentration of carbon dioxide or the output of the Sun.
What is the radiative forcing value?
Radiative forcing is calculated in watts per square meter, which represents the size of the energy imbalance in the atmosphere. NOAA also translates the total radiative forcing of these measured gases into an index value called the Annual Greenhouse Gas Index (right side of Figure 1).
What is radiative feedback?
Radiative feedbacks are the atmospheric mechanisms that balance Earth’s energy budget, the balance between incoming solar radiation and heat released from Earth’s surface as infrared radiation.
What is the global climate system?
The climate system is the highly complex global system consisting of 5 major components: the atmosphere, the oceans, the cryosphere (snow and ice), the land surface, the biosphere, and the interactions between them. Biosphere.
What is radiative forcing in relation to global warming?
Radiative forcing is the change in energy flux in the atmosphere caused by natural or anthropogenic factors of climate change as measured by watts / metre2. Positive radiative forcing means Earth receives more incoming energy from sunlight than it radiates to space. This net gain of energy will cause warming.
What are forcings and feedbacks?
Forcing denotes an external influence on a characteristic of the climate system. Feedback denotes the reaction of the (climate) system to the forcing which, in return, leads to a change in the forcings. Example: a change in the Earth’s temperature may cause effects that lead to more radiation being absorbed or emitted.
Is global warming a positive feedback loop?
The main positive feedback in global warming is the tendency of warming to increase the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, which in turn leads to further warming. Large positive feedbacks can lead to effects that are abrupt or irreversible, depending upon the rate and magnitude of the climate change.