Correlation fields for solar radiation in northeast Brazil

✍ Scribed by Juan Carlos Ceballos; Jaidete Monteiro De Souza; Admir Creso Targino Dantas

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2001
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 816 KB
• Volume: 21
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0899-8418
• DOI: 10.1002/joc.644

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Daily data of solar irradiation were used for analysing spatial decrease of correlation coefficients within northeast Brazil (a region extending over more than l.5 million km^2^). Available data of the regional climatological network correspond to typical distances between stations of 150 km and more. Two 3‐month periods were chosen: March–April–May (MAM) and August–September–October (ASO) 1975. It was found that spatial distribution of correlation for daily irradiations does not allow linear interpolations based on network data. However, factor analysis of 5‐day means (particularly useful for agricultural purposes) allowed identification of four regions with internal similarity of time series behaviour, which is induced by the influence of typical meteorological systems. For this time‐scale, correlation coefficients may be 0.7 and higher at rather long distances (in some cases, more than 600 km), so that the climatological network can provide data for a detailed description of the regional distribution of mean irradiation. For shorter time and space scales, a too dense solarimetric network would be necessary, and the use of modern techniques using satellite monitoring over the region may be more appropriate. Copyright © 2001 Royal Meteorological Society