Editing Cryosphere (section)

=== Surface reflectance ===
The surface reflectance of incoming [[solar radiation]] is important for the surface energy balance (SEB). It is the ratio of reflected to incident solar radiation, commonly referred to as [[albedo]]. Climatologists are primarily interested in albedo integrated over the [[Shortwave radiation|shortwave]] portion of the [[electromagnetic spectrum]] (~300 to 3500&nbsp;nm), which coincides with the main solar energy input. Typically, albedo values for non-melting snow-covered surfaces are high (~80–90%) except in the case of forests.{{citation needed|date=September 2023}} 

The higher albedos for snow and ice cause rapid shifts in surface [[reflectivity]] in autumn and spring in high latitudes, but the overall climatic significance of this increase is spatially and temporally modulated by [[cloud cover]]. (Planetary albedo is determined principally by cloud cover, and by the small amount of total solar radiation received in high [[latitudes]] during winter months.) Summer and autumn are times of high-average cloudiness over the [[Arctic Ocean]] so the albedo [[feedback]] associated with the large seasonal changes in sea-ice extent is greatly reduced. It was found that snow cover exhibited the greatest influence on [[Earth's energy budget|Earth's radiative balance]] in the spring (April to May) period when incoming [[solar radiation]] was greatest over snow-covered areas.<ref name="groisman">{{cite journal |last1=Groisman |first1=Pavel Ya. |last2=Karl |first2=Thomas R. |last3=Knight |first3=Richard W. |title=Observed Impact of Snow Cover on the Heat Balance and the Rise of Continental Spring Temperatures |journal=Science |date=14 January 1994 |volume=263 |issue=5144 |pages=198–200 |doi=10.1126/science.263.5144.198 |pmid=17839175 |bibcode=1994Sci...263..198G |s2cid=9932394 |url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.263.5144.198 |access-date=25 February 2022}}</ref>