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Climate
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Climate Change and Solar Variability
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Climate Change and Solar Variability

A special issue of Climate (ISSN 2225-1154).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2022) | Viewed by 24472

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Harry D. Kambezidis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Atmospheric Research Team, Institute of Environmental Research and Sustainable Development, National Observatory of Athens, Lofos Nymphon, GR-11810 Athens, Greece
2. Soft Energy Systems and Environmental Protection Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of West Attica, P. Ralli & Thivon 250, GR-12244 Egaleo, Greece
Interests: solar radiation; atmospheric aerosols; atmospheric turbidity; daylighting; climatology; meteorology; climate change
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Basil Psiloglou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Environmental Research & Sustainable Development, National Observatory of Athens, 15236 Athens, Greece
Interests: solar radiation modelling and applications; solar energy; atmospheric physics; meteorology; atmospheric pollution; investigation of climatic parameters' evolution-change; analysis of electricity demand characteristics; air quality, solar radiation, meteorological and hydrological instrumentation and measurements
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

The Special Issue on “Climate Change and Solar Variability“ is devoted to recent advances in the connection between solar activity and terrestrial climate. The influence of the Sun’s radiation on the Earth’s climate system is a complex and interdisciplinary issue; it includes a variety of scientific fields, such as climatology, computer modelling, space climate, solar activity, geomagnetism, and cosmic rays. Because of this complexity, a holistic approach is needed in order to shed light into the degree that the Sun’s activity controls the terrestrial climate and, therefore, is contributing to the ongoing global climate change. Though there have been many studies focusing on the connection between solar variability and terrestrial climate, each of them has touched the subject from its own point of view. Therefore, this Special Issue aims to give ground to researchers from various scientific backgrounds to express their views about this topic.

This Special Issue will, therefore, cover advances in (i) the modification of stratospheric ozone and clouds by solar UV radiation, (ii) global climate modeling, (iii) the influence of cosmic rays on clouds, (iv) the effects of solar sun spots on global climate, and (v) the comparison between human-induced and solar-driven influences on the ongoing climate change.

Dr. Harry D. Kambezidis
Dr. Basil E. Psiloglou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Climate is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • UV, ozone, clouds
  • Cosmic rays and clouds
  • The role of atmospheric aerosols in modifying global climate
  • Past climatic history of Earth
  • Facts: Little Ice Age, Maunder Minimum, recent global dimming/brightening
  • Solar variability
  • Non-human influences on climate change

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 2687 KiB  
Article
Climate History of the Principality of Transylvania during the Maunder Minimum (MM) Years (1645–1715 CE) Reconstructed from German Language Sources
by Martin Stangl and Ulrich Foelsche
Climate 2022, 10(5), 66; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cli10050066 - 09 May 2022
Viewed by 3045
Abstract
This paper deals with the climate in the former Grand Duchy of Transylvania, now one of the three major geographical provinces of Romania, within the so-called Maunder Minimum (MM) (1645–1715), an astrophysically defined part of the Little Ice Age (LIA), which was characterized [...] Read more.
This paper deals with the climate in the former Grand Duchy of Transylvania, now one of the three major geographical provinces of Romania, within the so-called Maunder Minimum (MM) (1645–1715), an astrophysically defined part of the Little Ice Age (LIA), which was characterized by reduced solar activity. The historical data from Transylvania are compared with that from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. This comparison for the period 1645–1715 shows good agreement but also reveals geographic characteristics of the region. For the first time, we present here a comparison between the four geographic areas in text and tabular form. Quotes from mostly German-language sources are reproduced in English translation. The results clearly help to identify regional climatic differences during the MM. Furthermore, we examine for a longer period (1500–1950) the extent to which the climate of Transylvania might have been affected by long-term fluctuations in solar activity, as deduced from isotopic reconstructions from ice cores. This way we compared astrophysical conditions with climatological ones in order to see if any probable relations do indeed show up. This comparison suggests a certain solar influence but the agreement is not very pronounced. Future investigation in a pan-European context is needed to reach reliable statements. Some results are unexpected—such as an unusually small number of severe winters during the last decades of the MM, where extreme cold was restricted to a few years, like the extreme winters 1699/1700 and 1708/1709. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Change and Solar Variability)
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19 pages, 5540 KiB  
Article
The Solar Radiation Climate of Greece
by Harry D. Kambezidis
Climate 2021, 9(12), 183; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cli9120183 - 15 Dec 2021
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3444
Abstract
The solar radiation climate of Greece is investigated by using typical meteorological years (TMYs) at 43 locations in Greece based on a period of 10 years (2007–2016). These TMYs include hourly values of global, Hg, and diffuse, Hd, horizontal [...] Read more.
The solar radiation climate of Greece is investigated by using typical meteorological years (TMYs) at 43 locations in Greece based on a period of 10 years (2007–2016). These TMYs include hourly values of global, Hg, and diffuse, Hd, horizontal irradiances from which the direct, Hb, horizontal irradiance is estimated. Use of the diffuse fraction, kd, and the definition of the direct-beam fraction, kb, is made. Solar maps of annual mean Hg, Hd, kd, and kb are prepared over Greece under clear and all skies, which show interesting but explainable patterns. Additionally, the intra-annual and seasonal variabilities of these parameters are presented and regression equations are provided. It is found that Hb has a negative linear relationship with kd; the same applies to Hg with respect to kd or with respect to the latitude of the site. It is shown that kd (kb) can reflect the scattering (absorption) effects of the atmosphere on solar radiation, and, therefore, this parameter can be used as a scattering (absorption) index. An analysis shows that the influence of solar variability (sunspot cycle) on the Hg levels over Athens in the period 1953–2018 was less dominant than the anthropogenic (air-pollution) footprint that caused the global dimming effect. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Change and Solar Variability)
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24 pages, 1198 KiB  
Article
Solar and Anthropogenic Influences on Climate: Regression Analysis and Tentative Predictions
by Frank Stefani
Climate 2021, 9(11), 163; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cli9110163 - 03 Nov 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 14842
Abstract
The paper aims to quantify solar and anthropogenic influences on climate change, and to make some tentative predictions for the next hundred years. By means of double regression, we evaluate linear combinations of the logarithm of the carbon dioxide concentration and the geomagnetic [...] Read more.
The paper aims to quantify solar and anthropogenic influences on climate change, and to make some tentative predictions for the next hundred years. By means of double regression, we evaluate linear combinations of the logarithm of the carbon dioxide concentration and the geomagnetic aa index as a proxy for solar activity. Thereby, we reproduce the sea surface temperature (HadSST) since the middle of the 19th century with an adjusted R2 value of around 87 percent for a climate sensitivity (of TCR type) in the range of 0.6 K until 1.6 K per doubling of CO2. The solution of the double regression is quite sensitive: when including data from the last decade, the simultaneous occurrence of a strong El Niño and of low aa values leads to a preponderance of solutions with relatively high climate sensitivities around 1.6 K. If these later data are excluded, the regression delivers a significantly higher weight of the aa index and, correspondingly, a lower climate sensitivity going down to 0.6 K. The plausibility of such low values is discussed in view of recent experimental and satellite-borne measurements. We argue that a further decade of data collection will be needed to allow for a reliable distinction between low and high sensitivity values. In the second part, which builds on recent ideas about a quasi-deterministic planetary synchronization of the solar dynamo, we make a first attempt to predict the aa index and the resulting temperature anomaly for various typical CO2 scenarios. Even for the highest climate sensitivities, and an unabated linear CO2 increase, we predict only a mild additional temperature rise of around 1 K until the end of the century, while for the lower values an imminent temperature drop in the near future, followed by a rather flat temperature curve, is prognosticated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Change and Solar Variability)
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15 pages, 1271 KiB  
Article
Shortwave Irradiance (1950 to 2020): Dimming, Brightening, and Urban Effects in Central Arizona?
by Anthony Brazel and Roger Tomalty
Climate 2021, 9(9), 137; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cli9090137 - 28 Aug 2021
Viewed by 1994
Abstract
The objective of this study was to evaluate long-term change in shortwave irradiance in central Arizona (1950–2020) and to detect apparent dimming/brightening trends that may relate to many other global studies. Global Energy Budget Archives (GEBA) monthly data were accessed for the available [...] Read more.
The objective of this study was to evaluate long-term change in shortwave irradiance in central Arizona (1950–2020) and to detect apparent dimming/brightening trends that may relate to many other global studies. Global Energy Budget Archives (GEBA) monthly data were accessed for the available years 1950–1994 for Phoenix, Arizona and other selected sites in the Southwest desert. Monthly data of the database called gridMET were accessed, a 4-km gridded climate data based on NLDAS-2 and available for the years 1979–2020. Three Agricultural Meteorological Network (AZMET) automated weather stations in central Arizona have observed hourly shortwave irradiance over the period 1987–present. Two of the rural AZMET sites are located north and south of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, and another site is in the center of the city of Phoenix. Using a combination of GEBA, gridMET, and AZMET data, annual time series demonstrate dimming up to late 1970s, early 1980s of −30 W/m2 (−13%), with brightening changes in the gridMET data post-1980 of +9 W/m2 (+4.6%). An urban site of the AZMET network showed significant reductions post-1987 up to 2020 of −9 W/m2 (3.8%) with no significant change at the two rural sites. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Change and Solar Variability)
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