Albedokartta

Albedokartta is a term of Finnish origin referring to a map of albedo. Albedo is a measure of the reflectivity of a surface, indicating how much solar radiation is reflected back into space. Albedokartta, therefore, visualizes these reflectivity values across a geographic area, typically on a global or regional scale.

These maps are crucial for understanding Earth's energy balance. Areas with high albedo, such as ice sheets and snow cover, reflect a large proportion of incoming sunlight, contributing to cooling. Conversely, darker surfaces like oceans and forests have low albedo, absorbing more solar radiation and leading to warming.

Albedokartta are generated using data from satellite-based sensors that measure the amount of sunlight reflected from Earth's surface. Different sensors and processing techniques can lead to variations in the maps, but the general principles remain the same. They are valuable tools in climate modeling, weather forecasting, and research into the impacts of land cover change and the effects of climate change on Earth's reflectivity. For instance, observing changes in the albedo of polar regions can provide insights into the rate of ice melt.