Lecture 3
Radiation Law and
Interation with Atmosphere
Ananya Roy
Lecturer
Environmental Science and Engineering
Radiation Laws
The propagation of electromagnetic energy follows certain physical
laws.
Plank discovered that electromagnetic energy is absorbed and
emitted in discrete units called quanta, or photons. The size of
each unit is directly proportional to the frequency of the energy’s
radiation. Planck defined a constant (h) to relate frequency (v) to
radiant energy (Q):
Q = hv
• His model explains the photoelectric effect, the generation of
electric currents by the exposure of certain substances to light
• the effect of the impact of these discrete units of energy
(quanta) on surfaces of certain metals, causing the emission of
electrons.
Radiation Law: Definitions
• The rate at which photons (quanta) strike a
surface is the radiant flux (Φ), measured in
watts (W)
• The irradiance (Ee) is defined as radiant flux
per unit area (usually measured as watts per
square meter)
• Radiant exitance (Me) defines the rate at
which radiation is emitted from a unit area
(also measured in watts/ square meter).
Blackbody
• A blackbody is a hypothetical object or source of energy that
absorbs all incident radiation; none is reflected. A blackbody emits
energy with perfect efficiency; its effectiveness as a radiator of
energy varies only as temperature varies.
• This hypothetical concept defined relationships between the
temperatures of objects and the radiation they emit.
• Kirchhoff’s law states that the ratio of emitted radiation to
absorbed radiation flux is the same for all blackbodies at the same
temperature.
• This law forms the basis for the definition of emissivity (ε), the
ratio between the emittance of a given object (M) and that of a
blackbody at the same temperature (Mb):
ε= M/Mb
Cont...
• The emissivity of a true blackbody is 1, and that of
a perfect reflector (a whitebody) would be 0.
Blackbodies and whitebodies are hypothetical
concepts. In nature, all objects have emissivities
that fall between these extremes (graybodies).
• Objects that absorb high proportions of incident
radiation and then reradiate this energy will have
high emissivities. Those that are less effective as
absorbers and radiators of energy have low
emissivities
Stefan– Boltzmann law
• The Stefan– Boltzmann law defines the
relationship between the total emitted
radiation (W) (often expressed in watts.cm–2)
and temperature (T) (absolute temperature,
K):
W = σT 4
The constant (σ) is the Stefan– Boltzmann
constant (5.6697 X 10–8) (watts · m–2 · K–4)
This law states that hot objects emit more
energy per unit area than do cool objects.
Wien’s displacement law
• Wien’s displacement law specifies the
relationship between the wavelength of
radiation emitted and the temperature of a
blackbody:
λ = 2,897.8/T
where λ is the wavelength at which radiance is
at a maximum and T is the absolute
temperature (K). As blackbodies or objects
become hotter, the wavelength of maximum
emittance shifts to shorter wavelengths
Interaction with Atmosphere
• All radiation used for remote sensing must pass
through the Earth’s atmosphere.
• If the sensor is carried by a low- flying aircraft, the
effects of the atmosphere on image quality may be
negligible. In contrast, energy that reaches sensors
carried by Earth satellites must pass through the
entire depth of the Earth’s atmosphere.
• In cities we are often acutely aware of the visual
effects of dust, smoke, haze, and other atmospheric
impurities due to their high concentrations.
Cont...
• As solar energy passes through the Earth’s atmosphere, it is
subject to modification by several physical processes,
including
(1)scattering, (2) refraction, and (3) absorption.
1) Scattering is the redirection of electromagnetic energy by
particles suspended in the atmosphere or by large molecules
of atmospheric gases
The amount of scattering that occurs depends on the
sizes of these particles,
their abundance,
the wavelength of the radiation, and
the depth of the atmosphere through which the energy is
traveling.
Types of Scattering (Rayleigh)
Rayleigh scattering occurs when atmospheric particles have
diameters that are very small relative to the wavelength of the
radiation. Typically, such particles could be very small specks of
dust or some of the larger molecules of atmospheric gases, such
as nitrogen (N2) and oxygen (O2).
Because Rayleigh scattering can occur in the absence of
atmospheric impurities, it is sometimes referred to as clear
atmosphere scattering occur at 9-10km altitude.
Rayleigh’s law states that this form of scattering is in proportion
to the inverse of the fourth power of the wavelength.
Rayleigh scattering is the cause of both the blue color of the sky
and the brilliant red and orange colors often seen at sunset.
Types of Scattering (Mie)
Mie scattering is caused by large atmospheric
particles, including dust, pollen, smoke, and
water droplets. Mie scattering have diameters
that are roughly equivalent to the wavelength
of the scattered radiation. Mie scattering is
wavelength- dependent, but not in the simple
manner of Rayleigh scattering; it tends to be
greatest in the lower atmosphere (0 to 5 km),
where larger particles are abundant.
Types of Scattering (Non-selective)
Nonselective scattering is caused by particles that are much
larger than the wavelength of the scattered radiation. For
radiation in and near the visible spectrum, such particles might
be larger water droplets or large particles of airborne dust.
“Nonselective” means that scattering is not wavelength-
dependent, so we observe it as a whitish or grayish haze; all
visible wavelengths are scattered equally.
The most common example of non-selective scattering is the
appearance of clouds as white. As cloud consist of water droplet
particles and the wavelengths are scattered in equal amount, the
cloud appears as white.
Differences of 3 types of scattering
Effect of Scattering
Atmospheric Absorption
• The gas molecules present in the atmosphere strongly absorb the EMR
passing through the atmosphere in certain spectral bands. Mainly
three gases are responsible for most of absorption of solar radiation,
viz. ozone, carbon dioxide and water vapour.
• Ozone absorbs the high energy, short wavelength portions of the
ultraviolet spectrum (λ < 0.24 µm) thereby preventing the
transmission of this radiation to the lower atmosphere.
• Carbon dioxide is important in remote sensing as it effectively absorbs
the radiation in mid and far infrared regions of the spectrum.
• Two most important regions of water vapour absorption are in bands
5.5 - 7.0 µm and above 27 µm
Refraction
• The phenomenon of
refraction, that is bending of
light at the contact between
two media, also occurs in
the atmosphere as the light
passes through the
atmospheric layers of varied
clarity, humidity and
temperature.
