Horizontal Transport and Absorption of Solar Radiation in Inhomogeneous Clouds

The equation of radiative energy balance in homogeneous We let L denote the mean horizontal photon path length in plane-parallel cloud accounts for the photon transport in clouds. Major contributors to E(x,y) are those sections of vertical direction alone. From this equation, we can evaluate pixel located near its sides and having lengths on the order of absorption as a difference of the net radiative fluxes measured L. As pixel size grows, F )x)y increases linearly in each of on the cloud top and bottom. Real clouds exhibit extreme )x and )y, whereas the horizontal transport enhances for horizontal variability of their optical and, hence, radiative )x,)y# L and is almost unchanged when )x, )y > L. For this properties. So, the radiative energy balance equation for reason, at )x, )y >> L, E(x,y) << 1 and equation (1) thus inhomogeneous clouds includes extra term to describe the net becomes energy transport in the horizontal directions.