scholarly journals Estimation of Shortwave Solar Radiation on Clear-Sky Days for a Valley Glacier with Sentinel-2 Time Series

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 927
Author(s):  
Yanli Zhang ◽  
Xiang Qin ◽  
Xin Li ◽  
Jun Zhao ◽  
Yushuo Liu

Downward surface shortwave radiation (DSSR) is the main energy source for most glacial melting, and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data have been used extensively in the inversion of input parameters for estimating DSSR. However, for valley glaciers under complex climatic conditions, the values of MODIS atmospheric products, especially aerosol products, are often invalid, and TM images are always saturated with snow. Furthermore, an estimation model based on optical satellite images must simultaneously consider terrain and atmospheric effects and the transient nature of ice/snow albedo. Based on a high-resolution (12 m) digital elevation model (DEM), the newly launched Sentinel-2 satellites, rather than MODIS and TM, were used to provide input data for our published mountain radiation scheme in a valley glacier. Considering Laohugou Glacier No. 12 as the study area, 62 typical Sentinel-2 scenes were selected and spatiotemporal DSSR variations on the glacier surface were obtained with a 10 m spatial resolution during a mass-balance year from September 2017 to August 2018. Ground-based measurements on 52 clear-sky days were used for validation and the mean bias error (MBE = −16.0 W/m2) and root-mean-square difference (RMSD = 73.6 W/m2) were relatively low. The results confirm that DSSR is affected mainly by the solar zenith angle and atmospheric attenuation in flat areas of valley glaciers, while in areas with complex terrain, the DSSR received by the glacier surface is affected primarily by the terrain and ice/snow albedo, which exhibits very high spatial heterogeneity.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ning Hou ◽  
Xiaotong Zhang ◽  
Weiyu Zhang ◽  
Yu Wei ◽  
Kun Jia ◽  
...  

Downward shortwave radiation (RS) drives many processes related to atmosphere–surface interactions and has great influence on the earth’s climate system. However, ground-measured RS is still insufficient to represent the land surface, so it is still critical to generate high accuracy and spatially continuous RS data. This study tries to apply the random forest (RF) method to estimate the RS from the Himawari-8 Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI) data from February to May 2016 with a two-km spatial resolution and a one-day temporal resolution. The ground-measured RS at 86 stations of the Climate Data Center of the Chinese Meteorological Administration (CDC/CMA) are collected to evaluate the estimated RS data from the RF method. The evaluation results indicate that the RF method is capable of estimating the RS well at both the daily and monthly time scales. For the daily time scale, the evaluation results based on validation data show an overall R value of 0.92, a root mean square error (RMSE) value of 35.38 (18.40%) Wm−2, and a mean bias error (MBE) value of 0.01 (0.01%) Wm−2. For the estimated monthly RS, the overall R was 0.99, the RMSE was 7.74 (4.09%) Wm−2, and the MBE was 0.03 (0.02%) Wm−2 at the selected stations. The comparison between the estimated RS data over China and the Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF) RS dataset was also conducted in this study. The comparison results indicate that the RS estimates from the RF method have comparable accuracy with the CERES-EBAF RS data over China but provide higher spatial and temporal resolution.


1987 ◽  
Vol 109 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. C. Hooper ◽  
A. P. Brunger ◽  
C. S. Chan

A model, previously proposed, describing the sky radiance as a continuous function, has been calibrated from 11,000 individual measurements made in scans taken across springtime skies in Toronto using a narrow field of view radiometer. The model reproduces the measured sky radiance with a mean bias error under five percent and a root mean square error only slightly larger than the standard deviation of the measurements. The model is applied to the calculation of the ratio of the clear sky diffuse irradiance on a slope to that on a horizontal surface. Charts are presented for the direct determination of the expected values of these ratios for surfaces at three tilts and at any azimuth.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2583
Author(s):  
Brighton Mabasa ◽  
Meena D. Lysko ◽  
Henerica Tazvinga ◽  
Nosipho Zwane ◽  
Sabata J. Moloi

This study assesses the performance of six global horizontal irradiance (GHI) clear sky models, namely: Bird, Simple Solis, McClear, Ineichen–Perez, Haurwitz and Berger–Duffie. The assessment is performed by comparing 1-min model outputs to corresponding clear sky reference 1-min Baseline Surface Radiation Network quality controlled GHI data from 13 South African Weather Services radiometric stations. The data used in the study range from 2013 to 2019. The 13 reference stations are across the six macro climatological regions of South Africa. The aim of the study is to identify the overall best performing clear sky model for estimating minute GHI in South Africa. Clear sky days are detected using ERA5 reanalysis hourly data and the application of an additional 1-min automated detection algorithm. Metadata for the models’ inputs were sourced from station measurements, satellite platform observations, reanalysis and some were modelled. Statistical metrics relative Mean Bias Error (rMBE), relative Root Mean Square Error (rRMSE) and the coefficient of determination (R2) are used to categorize model performance. The results show that each of the models performed differently across the 13 stations and in different climatic regions. The Bird model was overall the best in all regions, with an rMBE of 1.87%, rRMSE of 4.11% and R2 of 0.998. The Bird model can therefore be used with quantitative confidence as a basis for solar energy applications when all the required model inputs are available.


2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Sedlar ◽  
R. Hock

Abstract. Energy balance based glacier melt models require accurate estimates of incoming longwave radiation but direct measurements are often not available. Multi-year near-surface meteorological data from Storglaciären, Northern Sweden, were used to evaluate commonly used longwave radiation parameterizations in a glacier environment under clear-sky and all-sky conditions. Parameterizations depending solely on air temperature performed worse than those which include water vapor pressure. All models tended to overestimate incoming longwave radiation during periods of low longwave radiation, while incoming longwave was underestimated when radiation was high. Under all-sky conditions root mean square error (RMSE) and mean bias error (MBE) were 17 to 20 W m−2 and −5 to 1 W m−2, respectively. Two attempts were made to circumvent the need of cloud cover data. First cloud fraction was parameterized as a function of the ratio, τ, of measured incoming shortwave radiation and calculated top of atmosphere radiation. Second, τ was related directly to the cloud factor (i.e. the increase in sky emissivity due to clouds). Despite large scatter between τ and both cloud fraction and the cloud factor, resulting calculations of hourly incoming longwave radiation for both approaches were only slightly more variable with RMSE roughly 3 W m−2 larger compared to using cloud observations as input. This is promising for longwave radiation modeling in areas where shortwave radiation data are available but cloud observations are not.


Author(s):  
Goh Ee Hang ◽  
Jing Lin Ng ◽  
Yuk Feng Huang ◽  
Stephen Luo Sheng Yong

Abstract Potential evapotranspiration (PET) is an important parameter for the operation of irrigation projects and water resources management. The globally recognized PET estimation model, the FAO-56 Penman–Monteith (FAO-56 PM) model, had been criticized for its requirement of many detailed meteorological variables, but nevertheless has been accepted as the baseline model in many worldwide studies. The performances of different PET models can be found to be excellent for a specific location but may not be representative in other regions. The aim of this study is to select the most suitable PET model to estimate PET in Malaysia. Three radiation-based models and four temperature-based models were compared with the FAO-56 PM model at seven selected meteorological stations in Peninsular Malaysia. The mean bias error, relative error (Re) and normalized root-mean-square error (NRMSE) and coefficient of determination (R2) were used to evaluate the performances of the PET models. The Re values of Turc models were below 0.2 at all stations, while Priestly–Taylor, Thornthwaite, Thornthwaite-corrected and Blaney–Criddle models were above 0.2. The Makkink and Hargreaves–Samani models were below 0.2 at most of the stations. Thus, the Turc model was recommended as the best model to estimate PET in Peninsular Malaysia.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 1331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony C. S. Porfirio ◽  
Juan C. Ceballos ◽  
José M. S. Britto ◽  
Simone M. S. Costa

The GL (GLobal radiation) physical model was developed to compute global solar irradiance at ground level from (VIS) visible channel imagery of geostationary satellites. Currently, its version 1.2 (GL1.2) runs at Brazilian Center for Weather Forecast and Climate Studies/National Institute for Space Research (CPTEC/INPE) based on GOES-East VIS imagery. This study presents an extensive validation of GL1.2 global solar irradiance estimates using ground-based measurements from 409 stations belonging to the Brazilian National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) over Brazil for the year 2016. The INMET reasonably dense network allows characterizing the spatial distribution of GL1.2 data uncertainties. It is found that the GL1.2 estimates have a tendency to overestimate the ground data, but the magnitude varies according to region. On a daily basis, the best performances are observed for the Northeast, Southeast, and South regions, with a mean bias error (MBE) between 2.5 and 4.9 W m−2 (1.2% and 2.1%) and a root mean square error (RMSE) between 21.1 and 26.7 W m−2 (10.8% and 11.8%). However, larger differences occur in the North and Midwest regions, with MBE between 12.7 and 23.5 W m−2 (5.9% and 11.7%) and RMSE between 27 and 33.4 W m−2 (12.7% and 16.7%). These errors are most likely due to the simplified assumptions adopted by the GL1.2 algorithm for clear sky reflectance (Rmin) and aerosols as well as the uncertainty of the water vapor data. Further improvements in determining these parameters are needed. Additionally, the results also indicate that the GL1.2 operational product can help to improve the quality control of radiometric data from a large network, such as INMET's. Overall, the GL1.2 data are suitable for use in various regional applications.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 920 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabrina Gentile ◽  
Francesco Di Paola ◽  
Domenico Cimini ◽  
Donatello Gallucci ◽  
Edoardo Geraldi ◽  
...  

Solar power generation is highly fluctuating due to its dependence on atmospheric conditions. The integration of this variable resource into the energy supply system requires reliable predictions of the expected power production as a basis for management and operation strategies. This is one of the goals of the Solar Cloud project, funded by the Italian Ministry of Economic Development (MISE)—to provide detailed forecasts of solar irradiance variables to operators and organizations operating in the solar energy industry. The Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis of the National Research Council (IMAA-CNR), participating to the project, implemented an operational chain that provides forecasts of all the solar irradiance variables at high temporal and horizontal resolution using the numerical weather prediction Advanced Research Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF-ARW) Solar version 3.8.1 released by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in August 2016. With the aim of improving the forecast of solar irradiance, the three-dimensional (3D-Var) data assimilation was tested to assimilate radiances from the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) aboard the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) geostationary satellite into WRF Solar. To quantify the impact, the model output is compared against observational data. Hourly Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) is compared with ground-based observations from Regional Agency for the Protection of the Environment (ARPA) and with MSG Shortwave Solar Irradiance estimations, while WRF Solar cloud coverage is compared with Cloud Mask by MSG. A preliminary test has been performed in clear sky conditions to assess the capability of the model to reproduce the diurnal cycle of the solar irradiance. The statistical scores for clear sky conditions show a positive performance of the model with values comparable to the instrument uncertainty and a correlation of 0.995. For cloudy sky, the solar irradiance and the cloud cover are better simulated when the SEVIRI radiances are assimilated, especially in the short range of the simulation. For the cloud cover, the Mean Bias Error one hour after the assimilation time is reduced from 41.62 to 20.29 W/m2 when the assimilation is activated. Although only two case studies are considered here, the results indicate that the assimilation of SEVIRI radiance improves the performance of WRF Solar especially in the first 3 hour forecast.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. C. Chakraborty ◽  
Xuhui Lee

AbstractDiffuse solar radiation is an important, but understudied, component of the Earth’s surface radiation budget, with most global climate models not archiving this variable and a dearth of ground-based observations. Here, we describe the development of a global 40-year (1980–2019) monthly database of total shortwave radiation, including its diffuse and direct beam components, called BaRAD (Bias-adjusted RADiation dataset). The dataset is based on a random forest algorithm trained using Global Energy Balance Archive (GEBA) observations and applied to the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2) dataset at the native MERRA-2 resolution (0.5° by 0.625°). The dataset preserves seasonal, latitudinal, and long-term trends in the MERRA-2 data, but with reduced biases than MERRA-2. The mean bias error is close to 0 (root mean square error = 10.1 W m−2) for diffuse radiation and −0.2 W m−2 (root mean square error = 19.2 W m−2) for the total incoming shortwave radiation at the surface. Studies on atmosphere-biosphere interactions, especially those on the diffuse radiation fertilization effect, can benefit from this dataset.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Nicholas Kwarikunda ◽  
Zivayi Chiguvare

Evaluation of the maximum solar energy potential of a given area for possible deployment of solar energy technologies requires assessment of clear sky solar irradiance for the region under consideration. Such localized assessment is critical for optimal sizing of the technology to be deployed in order to realize the anticipated output. As the measurements are not always available where they are needed, models may be used to estimate them. In this study, three different models were adapted for the geographical location of the area under study and used to estimate clear sky global horizontal irradiance (GHI) at three locations in the subtropical desert climate of Namibia. The three models, selected on the basis of input requirements, were used to compute clear sky GHI at Kokerboom, Arandis, and Auas. The models were validated and evaluated for performance using irradiance data measured at each of the sites for a period of three years by computing statistical parameters such as mean bias error (MBE), root mean square error (RMSE), and the coefficient of determination (R2), normalized MBE, and normalized RMSE. Comparative results between modelled and measured data showed that the models fit well the measured data, with normalized root mean square error values in the range 4–8%, while the R2 value was above 98% for the three models. The adapted models can thus be used to compute clear sky GHI at these study areas as well as in other regions with similar climatic conditions.


2012 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 150-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Qin ◽  
Kun Yang ◽  
Shunlin Liang ◽  
Wenjun Tang

AbstractPhotosynthetically active radiation (PAR) is absorbed by plants to carry out photosynthesis. Its estimation is important for many applications such as ecological modeling. In this study, a broadband transmittance scheme for solar radiation at the PAR band is developed to estimate clear-sky PAR values. The influence of clouds is subsequently taken into account through sunshine-duration data. This scheme is examined without local calibration against the observed PAR values under both clear- and cloudy-sky conditions at seven widely distributed Surface Radiation Budget Network (SURFRAD) stations. The results indicate that the scheme can estimate the daily mean PAR at these seven stations under all-sky conditions with root-mean-square error and mean bias error values ranging from 6.03 to 6.83 W m−2 and from −2.86 to 1.03 W m−2, respectively. Further analyses indicate that the scheme can estimate PAR values well with globally available aerosol and ozone datasets. This suggests that the scheme can be applied to regions for which observed aerosol and ozone data are not available.


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