Initial Solar Irradiance Determinations from Nimbus 7 Cavity Radiometer Measurements

Abstract

Preliminary results from solar radiation measurements from the earth radiation budget experiment on the Nimbus 7 satellite yield a mean value of 1376.0 watts per square meter for the "solar constant" from 16 November 1978 to 15 May 1979. The observed variability (root-mean-square deviation) is +/- 0.73 watt per square meter (+/- 0.05 percent) for the period.