Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN)

The 12th meeting of BSRN is schedule for 1-3 August 2012 in Potsdam, Germany. The meeting will be hosted by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) Research Unit at the Albert Einstein Science Park in Potsdam, Germany . The meeting will be held the week before the International Radiation Commission's quadrennial Symposium (IRS-2012) in Berlin. Considering some overlap in interests and presentations between the two meetings, the BSRN meeting has been shortened by one day to compensate for this overlap. It is expected that a block of hotel rooms convenient to the BSRN meeting will be set aside for the dates of the BSRN meeting. Further information on the hotel, meeting registration, and logistics will be made available in the near future. For information about the IRS click here.

About BSRN

Because of the important role radiation plays in the climate system, the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) was established to provide a worldwide network to continuously measure radiative fluxes at the Earth's surface. Many of these stations began operation in 1992 and each year more stations are added to the network. These stations provide data for the calibration of the GEWEX Surface Radiation Budget (SRB) Project and other satellite-based measurements of radiative fluxes. BSRN data are also used to validate radiative flux models.

About 40 stations in contrasting climatic zones, covering a latitude range from 80°N to 90°S (see station maps) are providing data to the BSRN archive located at the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) in Bremerhaven, Germany. In 2004, BSRN was designated as the global surface radiation network for the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS). The BSRN stations also contribute to the Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW).

• Monitor the background shortwave and longwave radiative components (least influenced by immediate human activities which are regionally concentrated) and their changes with the best methods currently available.
• Provide data for the calibration of satellite-based estimates of the surface radiative fluxes.
• Produce high quality observational data to be used for validating the theoretical computations of radiative fluxes by models.

• BSRN-10 Report
• BSRN-11 Report

• Listing of Participants
• Meeting Agenda (with hyperlinks to presentations)
• Group Photo
  
• Workshop summary report in May 2010 issue of GEWEX News
• BSRN-11 Report

BSRN Project Manager
Dr. Ellsworth G. Dutton
NOAA/GMD
Boulder, Colorado, USA

BSRN Science Chair
Dr. Christian Kummerow
Colorado State University
Ft. Collins, Colorado