What factors affect the amount of solar energy that reaches the earth’s surface?

Latitudes, cloud cover, seasons and water vapor

Explanation:

The factors that affect the amount of incoming solar energy reaching on the surface of the earth are as follows-

1) Latitude- The latitude plays an important role in controlling the incoming solar radiation. The places at the equatorial regions experience more heat energy as the sunlight is directly incident on this region. The polar regions receive lesser solar energy because it becomes difficult for the light to reach that region.

2) Clouds- Clouds acts as albedo as it has the property to reflect solar light back into the atmosphere, thereby keeping the surface comparatively cooler.

3) Season- Season occurs due to the tiltation of the earth. season changes when the earth changes its position relative to the sun. In the summer and spring, the tilt of the earth is towards the northern hemisphere and sunlight is maximum in this region. So it receives more amount of solar energy. Whereas autumn and winter remains comparatively cooler.

4) Water vapor- The presence of water vapor in the atmosphere leads to an increase in the absorption of solar energy. When water vapor is less, it receives less solar energy.

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