{"id":344793,"date":"2024-10-01T12:49:12","date_gmt":"2024-10-01T10:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=344793"},"modified":"2024-10-01T12:49:14","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T10:49:14","slug":"the-recent-decades-of-cloud-cover-decline-may-be-a-continuation-of-a-trend-that-began-in-1818","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=344793","title":{"rendered":"The Recent Decades Of Cloud Cover Decline May Be A Continuation Of A Trend That Began In 1818"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From NoTricksZone<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Kenneth Richard<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Per a new study<\/a>, the last 200 years of global warming are associated with cloud cover decline, and this decreasing cloud albedo can be linked to \u201cthe dominant roles of external forces \u2013 volcanic, solar, and oceanic \u2013 in their mutual influence after the LIA [Little Ice Age].\u201d<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Scientists have repeatedly reported a satellite-observed (CERES) cloud cover albedo decline that has led to an increase in solar radiation absorbed by the Earth\u2019s oceans \u2013 a trend that explains the post-2000 temperature increase (D\u00fcbal and Vahrenholt, 2021<\/a><\/strong>, Loeb et al., 2021<\/a><\/strong>, Stephens et al., 2022<\/a><\/strong>, Koutsoyiannis et al., 2023<\/a><\/strong>, Loeb et al., 2024<\/a><\/strong>, Nikolov and Zeller, 2024<\/a><\/strong>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scientists have now formulated new 1500 to 2022 CE reconstruction of cloud cover over the Mediterranean region. The authors suggest their reconstruction of cloud cover may be representative of more than just this region, as it is a product of large scale processes that may \u201ctranscend geographical boundaries.\u201d In other words, what happens in the Mediterranean region may well have global implications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reconstruction indicates the modern declining cloud cover trend may not only have been occurring since 2000, but, except for a brief increasing period from about 1945 to 1980 (that coincided with a global cooling trend), has been ongoing for over 200 years. The \u201cturning point\u201d years were 1815-1818, following the eruption of Mount Tambora. From that point on there has been a precipitous decline in cloud cover that departs from multi-decadal variability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The authors suggest the \u201cdominant\u201d factors linked to the post-1800s include solar forcing, volcanic forcing, and the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur study\u2026indicating the dominant roles of external forces \u2013 volcanic, solar, and oceanic \u2013 in their mutual influence after the LIA\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis combination of factors [AMO surging to a positive phase, a significant rise in solar forcing] likely contributed to a substantial decrease in cloud cover in the Mediterranean area.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Image Source:\u00a0Diodato et al., 2024<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, the authors also repeat the model-based assumption that the post-LIA rising temperatures could have been a contributing causal<\/em> factor in the 1800s-to-present cloud cover decline. In other words, the warming led to cloud decline, and not the other way around. This assumption is odd, at best. It is well known warmer seawater adds more water to the air than cooling seawater. Which is why, for example, water vapor concentrations reach 35,000 ppm in the tropics, but less than 1,000 ppm at the poles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, it is well known that warmer summers are cloudier than colder winters (see Malliard et al., 2021<\/a><\/strong> and Abrahim et al., 2022<\/a><\/strong> below, for example). Cloudier summers can be 10 to 15\u00b0C warmer than clearer-sky winters across the middle and high latitudes. In contrast, the modern warming trend of only tenths of a degree in recent decades could only produce negligible changes in clouds relative to these much larger seasonal temperature changes. Besides, a decline in cloud cover is the opposite of what occurs with warmer temperatures anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Image Source:\u00a0Malliard et al., 2021<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Abrahim et al., 2022<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, real-world observations (Jonas, 2022<\/a><\/strong>) are very clear on the question of whether warming induces a decline in cloud cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA rise in temperature causes an increase in cloud cover.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c0.71 percentage points of cloud cover per deg C of temperature.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
\u00a0 Image Source:\u00a0Jonas, 2022<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Anthropogenic global warming apologists want to believe the observed decline cloud cover in recent decades is human caused. Thus, climate model inputs have been programmed to say warming from rising greenhouse gases leads to cloud decline, and cloud decline leads to more warming \u2013 a perpetual, runaway positive feedback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problematically, actual, real-world observations show warming leads to cloud increases, not decreases. Thus, neither warming nor rising greenhouse gases can explain the observed modern cloud decline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And since declining cloud cover, a function of \u201cunforced internal variabilty<\/a><\/strong>,\u201d allows more solar radiation absorption at the surface, this can explain modern warming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Scientists have repeatedly reported a satellite-observed (CERES) cloud cover albedo decline that has led to an increase in solar radiation absorbed by the Earth\u2019s oceans \u2013 a trend that explains the post-2000 temperature increase <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":344801,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691830750,691821698,691818087,691830749],"class_list":["post-344793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-atlantic-multi-decadal-oscillation-amo","tag-cloud-cover","tag-global-warming","tag-satellite-observed-ceres","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0Clouds.jpg?fit=1500%2C1125&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1rHb","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":371882,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=371882","url_meta":{"origin":344793,"position":0},"title":"New Study: Recent \u2018Unprecedented\u2019 Cloud Cover Decline Driving Modern (And Past) Climate Change","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/25\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201c[T]he increase in absorbed solar radiation is primarily due to natural variations in cloudiness and surface albedo, which have served as the main forcing factors of the flux above the atmosphere over the last 2 decades.\u201d\u00a0\u2013 Diodato et al., 2025","rel":"","context":"In \"absorbed solar radiation (ASR)\"","block_context":{"text":"absorbed solar radiation (ASR)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=absorbed-solar-radiation-asr"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0701622.webp?fit=1200%2C720&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0701622.webp?fit=1200%2C720&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, 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Study: The Warming Trend Since 2013 Explained by Increases in Absorbed Solar Radiation, Not CO2","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"12\/24\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Instead, a\u00a0new study\u00a0published in the journal\u00a0Science\u00a0contends that decreasing cloud albedo and the consequent increase in ASR or absorbed solar radiation (+0.97 to 1.10 W\/m\u00b2\/decade according to ERA5 and CERES, respectively), explains the warming over the last decade. (Less cloud cover means more solar radiation reaches the Earth\u2019s surface, warming it.)","rel":"","context":"In \"carbon dioxide (CO\u2082)\"","block_context":{"text":"carbon dioxide (CO\u2082)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=carbon-dioxide-co%e2%82%82"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0acp-20-9895-2020-f06-web.png?fit=1200%2C536&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0acp-20-9895-2020-f06-web.png?fit=1200%2C536&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0acp-20-9895-2020-f06-web.png?fit=1200%2C536&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0acp-20-9895-2020-f06-web.png?fit=1200%2C536&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0acp-20-9895-2020-f06-web.png?fit=1200%2C536&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":426924,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=426924","url_meta":{"origin":344793,"position":3},"title":"CERES Data Shocker: Clouds and Albedo Changes Account for All Modern Warming","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/18\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Nikolov and Zeller use NASA CERES satellite data on planetary albedo (Earth's reflectivity) and compare it to their semi-empirical model, which downplays or replaces the traditional greenhouse effect with a thermodynamic pressure-based explanation for atmospheric warming.","rel":"","context":"In \"albedo changes\"","block_context":{"text":"albedo changes","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=albedo-changes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMONR7W1WkelAFxbQi9d6Gzi-8zRmMnp2HM4reHPiL577qKJZLwz7XGiVCukBMSy3WS8GdaxT_O5lT9aicR80qDPRyke9m4jvhiilhH6UMudJ-OQkQWDESym3DfMlU548jP6hNBJFGHHSR7SHuCFRqBzw6YQA-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMONR7W1WkelAFxbQi9d6Gzi-8zRmMnp2HM4reHPiL577qKJZLwz7XGiVCukBMSy3WS8GdaxT_O5lT9aicR80qDPRyke9m4jvhiilhH6UMudJ-OQkQWDESym3DfMlU548jP6hNBJFGHHSR7SHuCFRqBzw6YQA-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMONR7W1WkelAFxbQi9d6Gzi-8zRmMnp2HM4reHPiL577qKJZLwz7XGiVCukBMSy3WS8GdaxT_O5lT9aicR80qDPRyke9m4jvhiilhH6UMudJ-OQkQWDESym3DfMlU548jP6hNBJFGHHSR7SHuCFRqBzw6YQA-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMONR7W1WkelAFxbQi9d6Gzi-8zRmMnp2HM4reHPiL577qKJZLwz7XGiVCukBMSy3WS8GdaxT_O5lT9aicR80qDPRyke9m4jvhiilhH6UMudJ-OQkQWDESym3DfMlU548jP6hNBJFGHHSR7SHuCFRqBzw6YQA-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AQMONR7W1WkelAFxbQi9d6Gzi-8zRmMnp2HM4reHPiL577qKJZLwz7XGiVCukBMSy3WS8GdaxT_O5lT9aicR80qDPRyke9m4jvhiilhH6UMudJ-OQkQWDESym3DfMlU548jP6hNBJFGHHSR7SHuCFRqBzw6YQA-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":342670,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=342670","url_meta":{"origin":344793,"position":4},"title":"Satellite Observations Confirm 2000-\u201922 Warming Has Been Due To An Increasing Solar Radiation Trend","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/11\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Satellite observations from CERES (Clouds and the Earth\u2019s Radiant Energy System) indicate cloud cover has been declining since 2000. Declining cloud cover has meant less shortwave radiation has been reflected to space, resulting in an increase in the solar radiation absorbed by the Earth\u2019s surface (ocean).","rel":"","context":"In \"CERES (Clouds and the Earth\u2019s Radiant Energy System)\"","block_context":{"text":"CERES (Clouds and the Earth\u2019s Radiant Energy System)","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=ceres-clouds-and-the-earths-radiant-energy-system"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0AdobeStock_266865139.jpg?fit=1200%2C668&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0AdobeStock_266865139.jpg?fit=1200%2C668&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0AdobeStock_266865139.jpg?fit=1200%2C668&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0AdobeStock_266865139.jpg?fit=1200%2C668&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0AdobeStock_266865139.jpg?fit=1200%2C668&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":306163,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=306163","url_meta":{"origin":344793,"position":5},"title":"The Continuing Albedo Change Warms the Earth More Than Twice as Much as CO2","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/06\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Earth\u2019s reflectivity is measured by\u00a0albedo\u00a0(a latin word meaning \u2018whiteness\u2019). Albedo measures the proportion of solar irradiation that is reflected back to space, either by the ground or in the atmosphere.","rel":"","context":"In \"Albedo\"","block_context":{"text":"Albedo","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=albedo"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/00ef932e_e6287be66f6249448cffdaaa7c295fe6mv1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/00ef932e_e6287be66f6249448cffdaaa7c295fe6mv1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/00ef932e_e6287be66f6249448cffdaaa7c295fe6mv1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/00ef932e_e6287be66f6249448cffdaaa7c295fe6mv1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/00ef932e_e6287be66f6249448cffdaaa7c295fe6mv1.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=344793"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344793\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":344803,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344793\/revisions\/344803"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/344801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=344793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=344793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=344793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}