Source of heat (energy) in ocean-atmosphere system
Primary source is radiation from sun, called insolation
Next most important source, geothermal heat, contributes about 1/5000th of the amount of energy reaching Earth from the sun
Insolation is a mix of wavelengths & frequencies of EM radiation, corresponding to radiation from a black-body with a temperature of ~6000°C
- Maximum intensity of radiation has a wavelength of 0.5 micrometers (0.5 x 10-6 m = 5,000 Å), corresponding to visible red light
- Visible light + near infrared radiation + near ultraviolet radiation together account for more than 90% of energy from sun
Use the term ‘short wave radiation’ to refer to the mix of EM radiation that makes up insolation because this radiation has wavelengths on the order thousands of angstroms