Imagine that we are evaluating the solar radiation received at a specific point on the planet (fixed latitude and longitude), do you know from what variation of height the decrease / increase in solar radiation is significant?
I have an idea, here there is an article that discuss this topic (https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00470155/document) but, I would apreciate if someone has made a smaller scale study (city scale, for example).
Thank you in advance.
Hi Abbas J.
Imagine we are analysing the sun irradice that reach a specific city the same day and moment of the day. Do you think that the irradiance reaching the ground is much smaller than the irradiance reaching the buildings roof?. I know that it cannot be generalized since it depends on the height of the buildings, but do you think that the variation of the incoming sun radiation at these two levels of height is significant when analysing buildings of 30m, for example?
The solar radiation intensity remain constant for this altitude, the effect is not significant.
yeah, Edwin sir is right to say there will not much different of solar irradiation in small elevation.
I confirm that a difference of 30 m will not result in a measurable impact on irradiance. What would have a direct impact is the presence of shading, however, which is more likely at ground level than higher up.
The intensity of solar radiation may remain same and the result will be not significant.
The altitude effect under a clear sky depends on the wavelength, solar elevation, atmospheric turbidity and the albedo of the terrain. The altitude effect of global irradiance increases steadily from 9% per 1000 m (370 nm) to 11% per I000 m
(320 nm) and then more rapidly to 24% per 1000 m (300 nm). The global irradiance shows a considerably smaller
altitude effect than the direct irradiance, because the direct
irradiance is partly transformed by scattering (diffuse irradiance).
This article is useful
Increase in solar UV radiation with altitude
A parameterisation of vertical profile of solar irradiance
for correcting solar fluxes for changes in terrain elevation
A new parameterization of the UV irradiance altitude dependence
for clear-sky conditions and its application in the on-line UV tool
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