A CLIMATOLOGY OF SOLAR ERYTHEMA DOSE*

Abstract

Abstract —Semi‐empirical formulas for the ultraviolet erythema dose derived in an earlier paper are used to deduce an ultraviolet photoclimatology. We calculate the climatology of daily erythema radiation doses for the northern hemisphere at 5d̀ latitude intervals. Similar dose calculations are also performed specifically for ten metropolitan areas. Effects of seasonal and geographic variations of ozone, turbidity, and cloudiness on the local erythema doses are also investigated. We present a simple approximate analytic formula for the annual erythema dose as a function of latitude, cloud cover, and ground albedo for use in connection with studies of the epidemiology of skin cancer. The implications of possible ozone depletion due to a future fleet of supersonic aircraft in the stratosphere are discussed. These calculations are made for a normal ozone thickness of 0.32 cm and for a 5, 10, 20, and 50 per cent ozone reduction.