The process responsible for the release of heat energy by the earth to the atmosphere The process responsible for the release of heat energy by the Earth to the atmosphere is primarily known as terrestrial or longwave radiation. Here’s a brief explanation:
- Incoming Solar Radiation: The Sun emits shortwave radiation, which includes visible light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation. This radiation reaches the Earth and warms its surface.
- Earth’s Absorption: The Earth’s surface absorbs a portion of the incoming solar radiation, primarily in the form of visible light. The surface then re-emits this energy in the form of infrared or longwave radiation.
- Terrestrial Radiation: The Earth’s surface emits longwave radiation back into the atmosphere. This process is often referred to as terrestrial or longwave radiation.
- Greenhouse Effect: Greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and others, absorb and re-emit some of the outgoing longwave radiation. This process traps heat in the atmosphere, maintaining a temperature suitable for life on Earth. This natural greenhouse effect is essential for regulating the planet’s temperature.
- Heat Exchange: The Earth’s surface also exchanges heat with the atmosphere through conduction, convection, and latent heat processes. These mechanisms play a role in redistributing heat within the Earth-atmosphere system.
How do the three major processes of heat transfer affect the temperature of the earth?
As you know, the heat source for planet earth is the sun (yellow dwarf star). Energy from the sun is transferred through space and through the earth’s atmosphere to the earth’s surface. Since this energy warms the earth’s surface and atmosphere, some of it is or becomes heat energy. There are three ways heat is transferred into and through the atmosphere (source: Weather):
- radiation
- conduction
- convection
Conduction: the release of heat energy by the earth to the atmosphere
