New method efficiently estimates surface reflectivity from incoming sunlight bounced back by clouds

Capturing sunlight reflected off the Earth's surface and bounced off a cloud back to the Earth is an effective measure of surface reflectivity—or surface albedo, the measure of how mirror-like the Earth's surface is. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory developed a new way to measure surface albedo by capturing that cloud-bounced sunlight. In collaboration with scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and University of Colorado, the researchers showed how the method has potential for capturing the surface albedo operationally and with accuracy.

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