Century-Long Monitoring of Solar Irradiance and Earth's Albedo Using a Stable Scattering Target in Space

TL;DR

This paper proposes using a permanently orbiting inert sphere, GeoSphere, for long-term space-based measurements of solar irradiance and Earth's albedo, enabling century-scale climate and solar studies.

Contribution

Introduction of a stable geosynchronous space target, GeoSphere, for continuous, long-term monitoring of solar irradiance and Earth's albedo from ground-based observations.

Findings

Potential to resolve long-term solar irradiance variations.

Enhanced understanding of Earth's albedo evolution.

Supports climate change research over a century.

Abstract

An inert sphere of a few meters diameter, placed in a special stable geosynchronous orbit in perpetuo, can be used for a variety of scientific experiments. Ground-based observations of such a sphere, "GeoSphere", can resolve very difficult problems in measuring the long-term solar irradiance. GeoSphere measurements will also help us understand the evolution of Earth's albedo and climate over at least the next century.