Finally...
From
Scientific American:
How Sunlight Controls Climate
New computer models begin to suggest how changes in the sun's strength might change weather patterns
Small changes in the sun's brightness can have big impacts on our planet's weather and climate. And now scientists have detailed how that process might work, according to a new study published August 28 in Science.
For decades some scientists have noted that certain climate phenomena�warmer seas, increased tropical rainfall, fewer clouds in the subtropics, stronger trade winds�seem to be connected to the sun's roughly 11-year cycle, which causes ebbs and flows in sunspots that result in variations in solar output.
That variation is roughly equal to 0.2 watt per meter squared�far too little to explain, for instance, actual warming sea-surface temperatures. A variety of theories have been proposed to explain the discrepancy: ozone chemistry changes in the stratosphere, increased sunlight in cloudless areas, even cosmic rays. But none of these theories, on its own, explains the phenomenon.
It will be interesting to see how widely this paper is reported. The correlation has been noted by a lot of people but for it to reach the hallowed halls of Science, a majorly peer-reviewed journal is a wonderful thing.
Posted by DaveH at August 31, 2009 8:47 PM