scholarly journals The Smithsonian solar constant data revisited: no evidence for cosmic-ray induced aerosol formation in terrestrial insolation data

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 2297-2316
Author(s):  
G. Feulner
Keyword(s):  
Solar Activity ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Precipitable Water ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
Aerosol Formation ◽  
Local Pollution ◽  
Spurious Result ◽  
Apparent Evidence

Abstract. Apparent evidence for a strong signature of solar activity in terrestrial insolation data was recently reported. In particular, a surprisingly strong increase of terrestrial insolation with sunspot number as well as a decline of the brightness of the solar aureole and the measured precipitable water content of the atmosphere with solar activity was presented. The latter effect was interpreted as evidence for cosmic-ray induced aerosol formation. Here I show that these spurious result are due to a~failure to correct for seasonal variations and the effects of volcanic eruptions and local pollution in the data. After correcting for these biases, the atmospheric water content, the solar aureole brightness, and the terrestrial insolation show no significant trend with solar activity. Hence there is no evidence for the influence of solar activity on the climate being stronger than currently thought, or a cosmic-ray mechanism linking the two.

scholarly journals The Smithsonian solar constant data revisited: no evidence for a strong effect of solar activity in ground-based insolation data

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3291-3301 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Feulner
Keyword(s):  
Solar Activity ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Sunspot Number ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Precipitable Water ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
Aerosol Formation ◽  
Local Pollution ◽  
Spurious Results

Abstract. Apparent evidence for a strong signature of solar activity in ground-based insolation data was recently reported. In particular, a strong increase of the irradiance of the direct solar beam with sunspot number as well as a decline of the brightness of the solar aureole and the measured precipitable water content of the atmosphere with solar activity were presented. The latter effect was interpreted as evidence for cosmic-ray-induced aerosol formation. Here I show that these spurious results are due to a failure to correct for seasonal variations and the effects of volcanic eruptions and local pollution in the data. After correcting for these biases, neither the atmospheric water content nor the brightness of the solar aureole show any significant change with solar activity, and the variations of the solar-beam irradiance with sunspot number are in agreement with previous estimates. Hence there is no evidence for the influence of solar activity on the climate being stronger than currently thought.

scholarly journals Application of the wavelet phase method of signal study to the analysis of asymmetric barycentric motions of the Sun and changes in processes occurring on the Sun, near-earth space and in the interior of the Earth

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 7-35
Author(s):  
Valeriy I. Alekseev
Keyword(s):  
Solar Activity ◽  
Solar System ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Rate Of Change ◽  
Phase Method ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Correlation Matrices ◽  
Solar Systems ◽  
The Earth

A set of studies has been carried out, indicating that solar activity and processes associated with the activity of the Sun: changes in the main magnetic fluxes, areas of polar spots, the number of polar torches at the poles of the Sun; -index of geomagnetic activity and -index of the ratio of plasma pressure to magnetic solar wind (SW), slow and high-speed flows of SW, cosmic ray intensity (CR); average annual values of the interplanetary magnetic field vector and its components; the temperature, density, and flow rate of the SW plasma, the synodic period of the revolution of the Sun as a star, and the radius of the Sun in relative units; the distance of the Earths geographic pole from the conventional international origin, the rate of change of the position of the Earths north magnetic pole, the main ionospheric parameters; the angle of the Earth's axis of rotation and volcanic eruptions; asymmetric movement of the Sun around the solar system of the solar system (in fractions of the solar radius); the distances from the solar systems CM to the Sun in km, the distances from the solar systems CM to the Earth, with high accuracy, are consistent with the movement of the Sun relative to the barycenter. The research is based on the wavelet transformation of the observations listed above variables in various time intervals with the subsequent calculation of their phase-frequency and phase-time characteristics, correlation matrices between characteristics. The studied variables are divided into groups, which include the barycentric movement of the Sun and changes in solar activity. The calculated two correlation matrices of the wavelet characteristics of the group of variables and the graphs of these characteristics in two coordinate systems reflect the consistency of changes in the group. The studies carried out indicate that the thermonuclear reaction occurring in the interior of the Sun, the external manifestation of which is solar activity, is controlled by the movements of the large planets of the Solar System relative to the Sun.

scholarly journals A Novel Lithium Foil Cosmic-Ray Neutron Detector for Measuring Field-Scale Soil Moisture

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andres Patrignani ◽  
Tyson E. Ochsner ◽  
Benjamin Montag ◽  
Steven Bellinger
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Atmospheric Pressure ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Absolute Difference ◽  
Atmospheric Conditions ◽  
Volumetric Soil Water Content ◽  
The Mean

During the past decade, cosmic-ray neutron sensing technology has enabled researchers to reveal soil moisture spatial patterns and to estimate landscape-average soil moisture for hydrological and agricultural applications. However, reliance on rare materials such as helium-3 increases the cost of cosmic-ray neutron probes (CRNPs) and limits the adoption of this unique technology beyond the realm of academic research. In this study, we evaluated a novel lower cost CRNP based on moderated ultra-thin lithium-6 foil (Li foil system) technology against a commercially-available CRNP based on BF3 (boron trifluoride, BF-3 system). The study was conducted in a cropped field located in the Konza Prairie Biological Station near Manhattan, Kansas, USA (325 m a.s.l.) from 10 April 2020 to 18 June 2020. During this period the mean atmospheric pressure was 977 kPa, the mean air relative humidity was 70%, and the average volumetric soil water content was 0.277 m3 m−3. Raw fast neutron counts were corrected for atmospheric pressure, atmospheric water vapor, and incoming neutron flux. Calibration of the CRNPs was conducted using four intensive field surveys (n > 120), in combination with continuous observations from an existing array of in situ soil moisture sensors. The time series of uncorrected neutron counts of the Li foil system was highly correlated (r2 = 0.91) to that of the BF-3 system. The Li foil system had an average of 2,250 corrected neutron counts per hour with an uncertainty of 2.25%, values that are specific to the instrument size, detector configuration, and atmospheric conditions. The estimated volumetric water content from the Li foil system had a mean absolute difference of 0.022 m3 m−3 compared to the value from the array of in situ sensors. The new Li foil detector offers a promising lower cost alternative to existing cosmic-ray neutron detection devices used for hectometer-scale soil moisture monitoring.

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