| Abstract |
Satellite observations have shown that the Earth's albedo has been decreasing since the 2000s. Its magnitude is 0.6-0.7 W/m2/decade, while the solar radiation energy reflected by the earth is about 100 W/m2 on a global and annual average, so this decreasing trend cannot be ignored. Changes in the extent of polar sea ice and land snow and ice due to global warming and a decrease in cloud cover due to changes in sea surface temperature are thought to be the reasons for this trend. On the other hand, during this period, the Earth's albedo has been nearly the same in the southern and northern hemispheres and has not been disrupted by albedo reduction. The north-south symmetry of the albedo is maintained by differences in cloud cover that compensate for the north-south differences in the land and sea distributions, but there is no conclusive explanation as to why this is the case and why the north-south symmetry is maintained despite the recent albedo decrease. This is an extremely interesting scientific issue. In this seminar, we will review relevant recent studies and discuss the factors together with seminar participants. |
