A detailed evaluation of the stratospheric heat budget: 2. Global radiation balance and diabatic circulations

Abstract

We present a detailed evaluation of radiative heating, radiative cooling, net heating, global radiation balance, radiative relaxation times, and diabatic circulations in the stratosphere using temperature and minor constituent data provided by instruments on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) between 1991 and 1993 and by the limb infrared monitor of the stratosphere (LIMS) instrument which operated on the Nimbus-7 spacecraft in 1978-1979. Included in the calculations are heating due to absorption of solar radiation from ultraviolet through near-infrared wavelengths and radiative cooling due to emission by carbon dioxide, water vapor, and ozone from 0 to 3000 cm-1 (∞ - 3.3 μm). Infrared radiative effects of Pinatubo aerosols are also considered in some detail. In general, we find the stratosphere to be in a state of global mean radiative equilibrium on monthly timescales to within the uncertainty of the satellite-provided measurements. Radiative relaxation times are found to be larger in the lower stratosphere during UARS than LIMS because of the presence of Pinatubo aerosols. The meridional circulations in the upper stratosphere as diagnosed from the calculated fields of net heating are generally stronger in the UARS period than during the LIMS period, while the lower stratosphere meridional circulations are stronger during the LIMS period. A climatology of these calculations is available to the community via a World Wide Web interface described herein. Copyright 1999 by the American Geophysical Union.