Articles

Experimentelle Charakterisierung der Wärmehülle der Erde

Matthias Rang
Elemente der Naturwissenschaft 123, 2025, P. 45-68 | DOI: 10.18756/edn.123.45
Article | Language: German | €6.00
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Abstract:

The complex interplay between the biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere – with their dynamic properties governing the planet’s warmth and energy balance – must ultimately be reflected in a manageable number of radiative-physical parameters, which in turn also influence these Earth spheres. In this study, the radiative-physical parameters were measured as a function of altitude in the troposphere and stratosphere using a balloon-borne sensor platform. Analysis of the net radiative flux enabled the distinction of three optical domains that characterize the interaction between terrestrial thermal radiation and different atmospheric layers. In particular, the data demonstrate that very dry atmospheric layers are dominated by scattering processes, whereas layers with high water vapor content increasingly exhibit absorption and emission phenomena. Owing to the inherently non-local nature of thermal radiation – which traverses the atmosphere from the Earth’s surface into space – the exchange of heat between Earth and the cosmos should not be viewed merely as an epiphenomenon of local atmospheric processes and parameters. Instead, it should be understood as an integral component of the Earth’s autonomous thermal organization.

 

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