An assessment of climate feedback processes using satellite observations of clear-sky OLR

Clear-sky longwave radiative feedback processes depicted in climate models are examined by comparing the estimates of clear-sky longwave radiative damping with those obtained from satellite observations of the clear-sky outgoing longwave radiation in conjunction with surface temperature from reanalysis datasets. In spite of well-known biases of tropospheric temperature and humidity in climate models, comparisons indicate that the intermodel ranges in the rate of clear-sky radiative damping are small for regional, seasonal, and interannual sources of variability. Furthermore, the model-simulated rates of radiative damping are consistent with those obtained from satellite observations, implying a strong positive correlation between temperature and water vapor variations over a broad range of spatiotemporal scales.