Don't fret
Hi el_miguel
Concept is straightforward, and well it seems like overkill, it's not a bad bit of foundation knowledge if you go on to learn about things like radiation fog etc.
Anyway, the electromagnetic spectrum is split up into groups by electromagnetic wavelength (X-ray, visible light, Ultraviolet etc). These wavelengths are measured in microns (or micrometers or 10^-6 metres). If the wavelength is less than 1 micron, it is shortwave and viceversa, it's long wave.
The sun emits Shortwave radiation, as it hits our atmosphere the very shortest wavelengths are absorbed by the Helium and Hydrogen high up, a lot of Ultraviolet is absorbed by 03 (i.e. Ozone) and of the remainder, some is absorbed by clouds and water vapour on the way down and the rest hits the ground, where it is either absorbed (and heats the ground in a process called insolation) or reflected. When it is reflected it becomes longwave radiation (i.e wavelength > 1 micron). This longwave radiation then exits our atmosphere.
Shortwave In Longwave Out (Mnemonic SILO)
Last edited by LondonJ; 26th Sep 2013 at 15:35.