Sonnenniveau

Sonnenniveau is a German term used to describe the level or intensity of sunlight at a particular location and time. In practical contexts it can refer to either the solar elevation angle—the height of the sun above the horizon—or the amount of solar irradiance reaching a surface. The phrase is not a formal scientific quantity in meteorology, but it is widely used in fields such as architecture, urban planning, horticulture, and solar energy to describe sun exposure conditions that affect daylighting, shading, thermal gain, and plant growth.

Several factors influence Sonnenniveau: time of day, season, geographic latitude, atmospheric conditions, cloud cover, aerosols, altitude, and surrounding terrain or built form that may cast shade. The solar elevation angle increases from sunrise to solar noon and decreases toward sunset. Solar irradiance, typically measured in watts per square meter (W/m^2), reflects the instantaneous power of sunlight reaching a surface and is modulated by atmospheric clarity and surface orientation.

Applications of Sonnenniveau include designing buildings for passive solar heating and daylighting, selecting and positioning shading devices to balance glare and heat control, planning landscaping or agricultural crops with regard to sun exposure, and sizing solar energy systems. Measurement and modeling tools—sun path diagrams, solar calculators, and pyranometers—help quantify solar position and irradiance for a given site.

In German-language usage, Sonnenniveau may appear informally; for precise technical work, professionals usually specify solar elevation, solar irradiance, or related quantities such as global horizontal irradiance. See also solar elevation angle, solar irradiance, sunpath, and sunshine duration.