Yearly changes in surface solar radiation in New Caledonia

• Published in: Advances in science and research Vol. 12; no. 1; pp. 1 - 4
• Main Authors: Blanc, P, Coulaud, C, Wald, L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Katlenburg-Lindau Copernicus GmbH 17-02-2015; Copernicus Publications
• Subjects: Aerosol optical depth; Atmosphere; Cloud cover; Datasets; Earth Sciences; El Nino; Electric power; Electricity; Engineering Sciences; Irradiation; Meteorology; Ocean, Atmosphere; Optical analysis; Optical thickness; Radiation (Physics); Sciences of the Universe; Solar energy; Solar irradiation; Solar power plants; Solar radiation; Sun; France; Pacific Ocean; New Caledonia; ISEW, Pacific, New Caledonia
• ISSN: 1992-0636; 1992-0628; 1992-0636
• DOI: 10.5194/asr-12-1-2015

New Caledonia experiences a decrease in surface solar irradiation since 2004. It is of order of 4% of the mean yearly irradiation over the 10 years period: 2004-2013, and amounts to -9 W m-2. The preeminent roles of the changes in cloud cover and to a lesser extent, those in aerosol optical depth on the decrease in yearly irradiation are evidenced. The study highlights the role of data sets offering a worldwide coverage in understanding changes in solar radiation and planning large solar energy plants such as the ICOADS (International Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set) of the NOAA and MACC (Monitoring Atmosphere Composition and Climate) data sets combined with the McClear model.