Effective Radiative Forcing
Radiative forcing is a measure — in watts per square meter — of how much a particular thing (a gas, an aerosol, an albedo change) tips Earth's energy balance toward warming or cooling.
Scientific detail
Effective radiative forcing (ERF) quantifies the perturbation to the top-of-atmosphere net radiative flux after rapid atmospheric adjustments. IPCC AR6 catalogs ERFs for greenhouse gases, aerosols and land-surface albedo change. Modelling suggests that increasing global mean surface albedo by 0.01 corresponds to approximately −1.4 W m⁻² of ERF — comparable in magnitude to the historical CO₂ forcing.
Related terms
Albedo
The fraction of sunlight a surface reflects — 0 is black, 1 is a perfect mirror.
Surface Energy Balance
The bookkeeping of energy flowing into and out of a surface at every moment.
Climate Adaptation
Actions that reduce harm from a changing climate here and now.
Adaptive Mitigation
Interventions that adapt to warming today and reduce warming tomorrow.
Where this concept shows up on MEER
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Explore in topic hubs
Curated collections of MEER research, projects, publications and stories that feature this term.
Albedo & Reflectivity
Understanding planetary albedo, surface reflectivity, ice-albedo feedback, and why restoring Earth's reflectivity matters for global temperature.
Climate Science
MEER's collected explainers on climate science — energy balance, the greenhouse effect, radiative forcing, tipping points and planetary boundaries.
Climate Adaptation
MEER's approach to climate adaptation: adaptive mitigation, radiative forcing, resilience, and the policy context around passive surface cooling.