Why is it often colder on cloudy summer days? (1 point)
• More sunlight is reflected than transmitted by the dark lower layers of clouds.
• More sunlight is transmitted than reflected by the white upper surface of clouds.
• More sunlight is absorbed than transmitted by the dark lower layer of clouds.
© More sunlight is reflected than transmitted by thwhite upper surface of clouds.
Correct.
Ah, the mysteries of weather! It's like nature's magic show, isn't it? So, on those cloudy summer days, the answer is actually that more sunlight is reflected than transmitted by the white upper surface of the clouds. Those clouds are like mirrors, bouncing that sun right back into space and leaving us with less warmth. Quite the sneaky trick, if you ask me!
The correct answer is: More sunlight is reflected than transmitted by the white upper surface of clouds.
Clouds can have a cooling effect on the Earth's surface because they reflect a significant amount of sunlight back into space. In the case of white upper surface clouds, they reflect more sunlight than they transmit. As a result, less sunlight reaches the ground, leading to cooler temperatures on cloudy summer days.
The correct answer is:
• More sunlight is reflected than transmitted by the white upper surface of clouds.
To understand why it is often colder on cloudy summer days, it's important to consider how clouds interact with sunlight.
Clouds are made up of tiny water droplets or ice crystals that reflect and scatter sunlight. This reflection of sunlight by clouds is known as albedo. Clouds have a higher albedo than the Earth's surface, which means they reflect a significant amount of incoming solar radiation back into space.
On a cloudy summer day, when there are thick, white clouds covering the sky, the sunlight hitting these clouds is mostly reflected back towards space. This reflection prevents a large part of the sunlight from reaching the Earth's surface. As a result, less solar energy is absorbed by the ground, leading to lower temperatures.
In contrast, on a clear summer day, when there are fewer or no clouds in the sky, sunlight is able to directly reach the Earth's surface. The ground absorbs a significant portion of this solar energy, causing temperatures to rise.
So, the statement that more sunlight is reflected than transmitted by the white upper surface of clouds is correct and explains why it is often colder on cloudy summer days.