Revisiting the greenhouse effect–a hydrological perspective

Abstract

Quantification of the greenhouse effect is a routine procedure in the framework of hydrological calculations of evaporation. According to the standard practice, this is made considering the water vapour in the atmosphere, without any reference to the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), which, however, in the last century has increased from 300 to about 420 ppm. As the formulae used for the greenhouse effect quantification were introduced 50–90 years ago, we examine whether these are still representative or not, based on eight sets of observations, distributed across a century. We conclude that the observed increase of the atmospheric CO2 concentration has not altered, in a discernible manner, the greenhouse effect, which remains dominated by the quantity of water vapour in the atmosphere, and that the original formulae used in hydrological practice remain valid. Hence, there is no need for adaptation of the original formulae due to increased CO2 concentration.