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Scientists found Earth's sunniest spot, where it's like standing on Venus
HIDDEN PLANET
Scientists found Earth’s sunniest spot, where it’s like standing on Venus
By Kasha Patel
July 20, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EDT
A radio telescope antenna of the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) project, in the Chajnantor plateau, Atacama Desert, on March 12, 2013. (Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images)
Located near the western coast of South America is a large plain near the Andes Mountains, the Altiplano of the Atacama Desert. Standing at more than 4,000 meters high, this generally cold and dry spot on Earth also receives more sunlight than any other place on the planet — outshining locations that are higher in elevation and closer to the equator. In fact, the plateau can see as much sun as Venus.
A recent study in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society measured a world record of solar irradiance (the output of light energy from the sun to Earth) of 2,177 watts per square meter on the Chilean Altiplano, which is also the second highest extensive plateau on Earth. That’s much higher than the radiation at the top of our atmosphere, which receives about 1,360 watts per square meter.
“It’s actually the radiation that you will be receiving in summer if you are standing up on Venus,” said study author Raul Cordero, a climatologist at University of Groningen in the Netherlands. He said that comparison is “incredible” because Venus is about 28 percent closer than Earth to the Sun.
On average, the solar irradiance on the plateau is around 308 watts per square meter, still the highest worldwide. Cordero said the solar energy potential in the Altiplano is roughly, on average, twice as high than in Central Europe and the U.S. East Coast.
The map shows the annual mean surface solar irradiance (total output of light energy from the sun to Earth) computed over the period 2011–2020 from NASA’s CERES data. The Chajnantor Plateau in the Altiplano experiences the highest annual mean surface SW irradiance globally (302 W per square meter). (Cordero, et al. (2023))
“If you are exposed to such a high radiation danger, you have to protect your skin,” said Cordero. “At this particular location, for people working there … they are aware that the radiation was high, but now we know how really high.”
{snip}
Gift Article
https://wapo.st/3OykuQ9
By Kasha Patel
Kasha Patel edits and reports on the weather, climate and environment for the Capital Weather Gang at The Washington Post. Before joining The Post, she covered Earth sciences and satellite research for NASA. Twitter https://twitter.com/KashaPatel
Scientists found Earth’s sunniest spot, where it’s like standing on Venus
By Kasha Patel
July 20, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EDT
A radio telescope antenna of the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) project, in the Chajnantor plateau, Atacama Desert, on March 12, 2013. (Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images)
Located near the western coast of South America is a large plain near the Andes Mountains, the Altiplano of the Atacama Desert. Standing at more than 4,000 meters high, this generally cold and dry spot on Earth also receives more sunlight than any other place on the planet — outshining locations that are higher in elevation and closer to the equator. In fact, the plateau can see as much sun as Venus.
A recent study in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society measured a world record of solar irradiance (the output of light energy from the sun to Earth) of 2,177 watts per square meter on the Chilean Altiplano, which is also the second highest extensive plateau on Earth. That’s much higher than the radiation at the top of our atmosphere, which receives about 1,360 watts per square meter.
“It’s actually the radiation that you will be receiving in summer if you are standing up on Venus,” said study author Raul Cordero, a climatologist at University of Groningen in the Netherlands. He said that comparison is “incredible” because Venus is about 28 percent closer than Earth to the Sun.
On average, the solar irradiance on the plateau is around 308 watts per square meter, still the highest worldwide. Cordero said the solar energy potential in the Altiplano is roughly, on average, twice as high than in Central Europe and the U.S. East Coast.
The map shows the annual mean surface solar irradiance (total output of light energy from the sun to Earth) computed over the period 2011–2020 from NASA’s CERES data. The Chajnantor Plateau in the Altiplano experiences the highest annual mean surface SW irradiance globally (302 W per square meter). (Cordero, et al. (2023))
“If you are exposed to such a high radiation danger, you have to protect your skin,” said Cordero. “At this particular location, for people working there … they are aware that the radiation was high, but now we know how really high.”
{snip}
Gift Article
https://wapo.st/3OykuQ9
By Kasha Patel
Kasha Patel edits and reports on the weather, climate and environment for the Capital Weather Gang at The Washington Post. Before joining The Post, she covered Earth sciences and satellite research for NASA. Twitter https://twitter.com/KashaPatel