Are you worried about clouds during the upcoming April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse? Then this may be some good news for you. According to new research out of the Netherlands, cumulus clouds (those puffy, cotton-like clouds) dissipate quickly during a solar eclipse as the ground cools.
Solar eclipses cause rapid dissipation of cumulus clouds, as observed in a study conducted in the Netherlands. Researchers used a new method to recover satellite measurements during three solar eclipses. The results could have implications for climate engineering using artificial eclipses.
Cumulus clouds over land start to disappear almost instantly during a partial solar eclipse. Until recently, satellite measurements during an eclipse resulted in dark spots in the cloud map. But researchers from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands (TU Delft) and Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) were able to recover satellite measurements by using a new method. The results may have implications for proposed climate engineering ideas, because disappearing clouds can partly oppose the cooling effect of artificial solar eclipses.
Although the effects of solar eclipses have been studied for centuries, it was unknown how strong clouds precisely react. Lead author Victor Trees of TU Delft said: ‘From Earth, you can count the clouds and watch them disappear, but that only provides anecdotal evidence. Even without a solar eclipse, clouds are constantly changing.’ The peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications Earth and Environment published the results of the study on February 12, 2024.
Satellites in geostationary orbit can continuously measure many clouds simultaneously in large areas, including impassable terrain. During a solar eclipse, measurements were not reliable, because the satellite algorithms did not take into account the decrease in sunlight during solar eclipses. This resulted in large dark patches in the cloud maps. Researchers have now succeeded in restoring satellite measurements during solar eclipses. They did so by accurately calculating the percentage of the sun that is obscured by the moon during an eclipse. This new method allowed them to correct the satellite measurements, revealing the rapid dissipation of cumulus clouds during a solar eclipse.
