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Accurate radiometers should measure the output of the Sun

Nature volume 401, page 841 (1999)Cite this article

Sir

We should make use of new technology to improve on the poor state of knowledge of the constancy of the Sun's output. In 1994, the National Research Council of the US National Academy of Sciences called for improved accuracy in measurements that monitor the Sun's output. In its report1, the council stated that, between 1980 and 1986, an estimated 0.1% decrease in the output of the Sun as part of the 11-year cycle just cancelled the effect on the climate produced by anthropogenic greenhouse-gas emission in the same period. This highlights the accuracy required to separate long-term anthropogenic effects from natural ones.

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References

  1. National Research Council Solar Influences on Global Change (National Academy Press, Washington DC, 1994).

  2. Fröhlich, C. & Lean, J. Geophys. Res. Lett. 25, 4377–4380 (1998).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bureau International des Poids et Mesures, Pavillon de Breteuil, 92312 Sèvres Cedex, France

    T. J. Quinn

  2. Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium, Davos World Radiation Centre, Dorfstrasse 33, CH-7260 Davos, Dorf, Switzerland

    C. Fröhlich

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  1. T. J. Quinn
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  2. C. Fröhlich
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Quinn, T., Fröhlich, C. Accurate radiometers should measure the output of the Sun. Nature 401, 841 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/44673

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