Truth To Power wrote:Depends what you mean by "high." It is not all absorbed until it encounters significant water vapor in the upper troposphere, because CO2's IR absorption spectrum has substantial gaps.
No, because what you are feeling is the energy in the visible (and UV) spectrum that your skin is absorbing. You can feel the same thing to a lesser extent by putting your hand in front of an LED light, which produces very little IR.
No, I do not, and I have stated that fact a number of times.
Of course, in theory. But it mixes with outgoing IR from the earth's surface, which is far greater, and there is no way to separate them out.
They can't, because the outgoing IR is many times greater than the incident IR from the sun.
Except what is reflected. Google "albedo" and start reading.
No, IR loss reaches a new equilibrium very quickly. What takes years or even centuries is heating and cooling of the oceans and the melting and growth of glaciers.
Except for the oceans and glaciers, the IR loss reaches its new equilibrium within each annual cycle.
No, that is false. I support my statements with facts, most of them common knowledge. If I say that an assertion of yours does not support the claim you say it supports, I explain why.
The equilibrium TtP speaks of is a result of the surface of the Earth heating a tiny amount each day, that adds up over the year to about 0.1 deg. C. This then adds over each decade to about 1 deg. C. If these numbers are taken as a basis to calculate from (it may be 0.05 deg.C to 0.15 deg. C; which becomes 1 deg. C per 20 years to 1 deg. per 6.667 years) then the average daily increase in temp is just the tiny 0.000274 deg. C per day. [Actually, because the Earth over the whole area is heating up about 0.000274 deg. C per day it is not correct to say that the Earth (on the average over its whole area) (let alone the daily and seasonal changes) is in equilibrium, the average temp is changing a tiny amount every day. The Earth is constantly chasing that new equilibrium state but as long as we keep adding CO2 it will never reach it.]
So, TtP
if your *new*equilibrium is not the result in a daily average temp increase of about 0.000274 deg. C; then it is up to you to explain why the amount of IR light being radiated up from the surface has increased to reach the new equilibrium amount that you claim is happening.
Also, like me you only support some of your assertions with evidence or arguments; AND much the evidence you assert is also just false. For example, your "new equilibrium" thing is very vague. My new almost equilibrium results from the 0.000274 deg. C average daily temp increase that has resulted from the CO2 in the air slowing the heat lost by the Earth which heats the Earth, which then results in more IR that then almost matches the incoming energy from the sun. Until you explain how your new equilibrium is created, it is just an example of an assertion without evidence.
Lukers, IR light can be seen as being like water in a glass. We don't need to separate the water that was in the glass from the water we just added. It is still in the glass. In the same way IR light coming in and going out is all being absorbed and re-radiated all day long. Some up and some down. We know that some of the IR heat going up reaches space. So, we should also know that some IR heat from the sun reaches the surface.
Lurkers, if we put 2 snakes in the refrig and cool them.
Then put the 2 snakes under a heat lamp to warm them,
with one under very thin cloth, and the other under a down blanket;
then the one under the down blanket will take longer to heat up to room temp, tight?
In the same way at night the Earth's surface is warm and it radiates IR heat up toward space, that is
in 1 case we are trying to get the heat down to the snake, and in the other case we are trying to get the heat out into space.
So, the added by humans CO2 acts like
the down blanket to slow the rate at which the heat reaches the cold thing (the snake or the void of space).
Now, as PoaDog said, (or was it Late?),
if it takes longer to rediate X amount of heat by IR out to space and the same X amount of light energy is reaching the Earth each day, then some tiny amount of heat will not have been lost to space each day (over the whole Earth, N. & S. hemispheres, and 24 hours), before the next day starts. Therefore, each day there will be a little more heat in the Earth's surface, and this will heat the surface (land and water, etc.), and then this increase in temp. will increase the IR energy being up by the surface. This increased IR heat will be enough to cause enough IR heat to be sent back into space (even though the blanket is thicker each day) to be close to the new equilibrium that TtP speaks of.
.