Calculation of the Radiative Balance in a Tropical Atmosphere at Different Concentrations of Carbon Dioxide

Abstract

The results of calculating the effect of the amount of carbon dioxide on the temperature distribution over altitudes in a tropical atmosphere are presented. The calculation was first performed with a resolution in the absorption spectrum of atmospheric gases and with a resolution in the directions of radiation propagation based on a mathematical model of radiative equilibrium. The dependences of the temperature of different layers of the tropical atmosphere on the concentration of carbon dioxide are calculated. The effect of carbon dioxide on the radiative energy budget of tropical latitudes is also determined. According to calculations, a double increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide compared with the level of the middle of the last century will lead to an increase in temperature by about 1 K of the lower layers (up to a altitude of 10 km) of the tropical atmosphere. In this case, the temperature of the upper atmosphere (above 20 km) will decrease by about 15K. Such a change in the temperature distribution over the altitudes and a decrease in the transmittance of the atmosphere, caused by an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide, will reduce the flux of radiant energy into the open space by about 1% in tropical latitudes. The restoration of the flux to its initial value will occur according to calculations with an increase in the Earth's surface temperature by 2.7 K with a corresponding increase in the concentration of water vapor by 16%.