Heat Balance
The equilibrium which exists on the average between the radiation received by the earth and atmosphere from the sun and that emitted by the earth and atmosphere. The balance between heat loss (long wave radiation from the earth back into the atmosphere) and heat gain (incoming solar radiation).
Radiation
The process by which energy is propagated through any medium by virtue of the wave motion of that medium. Electromagnetic radiation, which emits heat and light, is one form. Sound waves are another.
Atmosphere
The gaseous or air portion of the physical environment that encircles a planet. In the case of the earth, it is held more or less near the surface by the earth’s gravitational attraction. The divisions of the atmosphere include the troposphere, the stratosphere, the mesosphere, the ionosphere, and the exosphere.
Insolation
Solar radiation or heating received at the earth’s surface. The name is derived from INcoming SOLar radiATION.