The tempo-spatial variations of Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR) in Iran (1988-2017)

Abstract

All objects whose temperature exceeds absolute zero (-273°C) can emit energy. The amount of energy emitted from the objects depends on their temperature and can be measured according to Stephan-Boltzmann's law. The maximum emission of this energy is at a certain wavelength defined by Planck's law. Regarding the surface temperature of the sun, it emits maximum energy at a wavelength of 0.48 microns, in the middle of visible waves, while the Earth emits its maximum energy at 10 microns (infrared) wavelengths. This radiation which starts from 3 microns and continues to 100 microns (infrared), is known as Outgoing Long Radiation (OLR). Measuring this radiation is very important for understanding the energy balance and the temperature of the Earth. Because of the difficulties in measuring this radiation, the use of remote sensing data can effectively help in understanding the tempo-spatial variations of OLR. The purpose of this study is to estimate the seasonal trend of Iran's outgoing longwave radiation by using National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites. In this study, the daily mean outgoing longwave radiation data for the period 1988/3/21 to 2018/3/20, with 1° spatial coverage, was extracted on a global scale from the United States Climate Data Record (CDR) database. Then, based on nearly 700 million pixels, the seasonal mean of Iran's outgoing longwave radiation was calculated for each year, and a time-space matrix was obtained with dimensions of 154*30, for each season. The rows of the matrix are locations (pixels) and the columns are the time (season). For each season of the year, the nonparametric test of Mann-Kendall was calculated at a confidence level of %90 for each individual pixel. The results showed that there was no negative trend in different seasons in Iran, and only in winter, Iran's territory has an extensive positive trend. Hence, the outgoing longwave radiation does not show trends in other seasons of the year. The positive trend of the outgoing longwave radiation during winter is due to cloudiness and snow in most of Iran. Also, in this study, the long-term mean outgoing longwave radiation pattern of Iran was calculated for each season, separately. Findings of the long-term mean of the seasons showed that outgoing longwave radiation depends on latitude and topography of the earth. So, the highest outgoing longwave radiation is seen in low and flat latitudes (especially in summer) and the lowest one is seen in high and uneven latitudes(especially in winter). © 2019 Iranian Geophyisical Society. All rights reserved.