Radiative effects of tropospheric ionisation

Abstract. Despite the increasing evidence that cosmic ray variations may influence clouds and climate, there has been little discussion of the direct radiative effects of atmospheric ionisation. Laboratory experiments show that hydrated molecular cluster-ions, formed in the atmosphere by cosmic rays, absorb in the infra-red continuum at wavelengths of 9–12 μm. The tropospheric magnitude of this effect is estimated: transmittance anomalies from clear sky ion concentrations peak at ~2% at 10 km in the mid-latitudes. A simple isothermal clear sky atmospheric model suggests the integrated effect of the absorption is ~2 Wm⁻². The effect appears detectable in existing surface data sets; surface micrometeorological data shows a significant anticorrelation between downwelling infra-red radiation and atmospheric cosmic ray ionisation. This is consistent with the infra-red attenuation observed in laboratory studies of cluster-ion absorption. If atmospheric ionisation from cosmic rays has universally direct radiative effects, then reinterpretation of satellite cloud data may be necessary.