Editing Cloud cover (section)

== Role in the climate system ==

Clouds play multiple critical roles in the [[climate system]] and [[diurnal cycle]]. In particular, being bright objects in the visible part of the [[sun|solar]] [[spectrum]], they efficiently reflect light to space and thus contribute to the cooling of the planet, as well as trapping remaining heat at [[night]]. Cloud cover thus plays an important role in the energetic balance of the atmosphere and a variation of it is a factor and consequence of and to the [[climate change]] expected by recent studies.<ref>{{Cite report | url= http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/?src=/climate/ipcc_tar/ | title= IPCC Third Assessment Report Chapter 7. Physical Climate Processes and Feedbacks (Atmospheric Processes and Feedbacks 7.2) | publisher= International Panel on Climate Change | access-date= August 24, 2013 | quote= It has extensive coverage of cloud-climate interactions | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130805091249/http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/?src=%2Fclimate%2Fipcc_tar%2F | archive-date= August 5, 2013 | url-status= dead }}</ref>