Stephens, G. L. et al. The albedo of Earth. Rev. Geophys. 53, 141–163 (2015).
Vonder Haar, T. H. & Suomi, V. E. Measurements of the earth’s radiation budget from satellites during a five-year period. Part I: extended time and space means. J. Atmos. Sci. 28, 305–314 (1971).
Ramanathan, V. The role of earth radiation budget studies in climate and general circulation research. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 92, 4075–4095 (1987).
Stevens, B. & Schwartz, S. E. Observing and modeling Earth’s energy flows. Surv. Geophys. 33, 779–816 (2012).
Bender, F. A.-M., Engström, A., Wood, R. & Charlson, R. J. Evaluation of hemispheric asymmetries in marine cloud radiative properties. J. Clim. 30, 4131–4147 (2017).
Diamond, M. S., Gristey, J. J. & Feingold, G. Testing cloud adjustment hypotheses for the maintenance of Earth’s hemispheric albedo symmetry with natural experiments. Geophys. Res. Lett. 51, e2024GL111733 (2024).
Voigt, A., Stevens, B., Bader, J. & Mauritsen, T. The observed hemispheric symmetry in reflected shortwave irradiance. J. Clim. 26, 468–477 (2013).
Datseris, G. & Stevens, B. Earth’s albedo and its symmetry. AGU Adv. 2, e2021AV000440 (2021).
Jönsson, A. & Bender, F. A.-M. Persistence and variability of Earth’s interhemispheric albedo symmetry in 19 years of CERES EBAF observations. J. Clim. 35, 249–268 (2022).
Diamond, M. S., Gristey, J. J., Kay, J. E. & Feingold, G. Anthropogenic aerosol and cryosphere changes drive Earth’s strong but transient clear-sky hemispheric albedo asymmetry. Commun. Earth Environ. 3, 206 (2022).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Emerging hemispheric asymmetry of Earth’s radiation. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 122, e2511595122 (2025).
Oreopoulos, L., Cho, N. & Lee, D. The role of Earth’s major cloud systems in the hemispheric albedo symmetry. J. Clim. 38, 7203–7215 (2025).
Singer, C. E. & Pincus, R. Southern Ocean clear-sky brightening from sea spray aerosol increase drives departure from hemispheric albedo symmetry. Geophys. Res. Lett. 53, e2025GL119637 (2025).
Wielicki, B. A. et al. Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES): an Earth observing system experiment. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. 77, 853–868 (1996).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF) Top-of-Atmosphere (TOA) Edition-4.0 data product. J. Clim. 31, 895–918 (2018).
Kato, S. et al. Surface irradiances of Edition 4.0 Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF) data product. J. Clim. 31, 4501–4527 (2018).
Sun, M. et al. Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) FluxByCldTyp Edition 4 data product. J. Atmos. Ocean. Technol. 39, 303–318 (2022).
Klein, S. A. & Hartmann, D. L. The seasonal cycle of low stratiform clouds. J. Clim. 6, 1587–1606 (1993).
Donohoe, A. & Battisti, D. S. Atmospheric and surface contributions to planetary albedo. J. Clim. 24, 4402–4418 (2011).
Cesana, G. V. et al. The correlation between Arctic sea ice, cloud phase and radiation using A-Train satellites. Atmos. Chem. Phys. 24, 7899–7909 (2024).
Cavalieri, D. J. & Parkinson, C. L. Arctic sea ice variability and trends, 1979–2010. Cryosphere 6, 881–889 (2012).
Eayrs, C., Li, X., Raphael, M. N. & Holland, D. M. Rapid decline in Antarctic sea ice in recent years hints at future change. Nat. Geosci. 14, 460–464 (2021).
Chen, C. et al. China and India lead in greening of the world through land-use management. Nat. Sustain. 2, 122–129 (2019).
Davies, T. W. & Smyth, T. Darkening of the global ocean. Glob Change Biol. 31, e70227 (2025).
Tselioudis, G., Remillard, J., Jakob, C. & Rossow, W. B. Contraction of the world’s storm-cloud zones the primary contributor to the 21st century increase in the Earth’s sunlight absorption. Geophys. Res. Lett. 52, e2025GL114882 (2025).
Eyring, V. et al. Overview of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) experimental design and organization. Geosci. Model Dev. 9, 1937–1958 (2016).
O’Neill, B. C. et al. The Scenario Model Intercomparison Project (ScenarioMIP) for CMIP6. Geosci. Model Dev. 9, 3461–3482 (2016).
Kravitz, B. et al. The Geoengineering Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (GeoMIP6): simulation design and preliminary results. Geosci. Model Dev. 8, 3379–3392 (2015).
McGraw, Z. & Polvani, L. M. Direct radiative impacts of stratospheric aerosols on the tropical troposphere: clouds, precipitation, and circulation in convection-resolving and global simulations. Preprint at https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.06163 (2025).
Gristey, J. J. & Feingold, G. Stratospheric aerosol injection would change cloud brightness. Geophys. Res. Lett. 52, e2024GL113914 (2025).
Bjerknes, J. Atmospheric teleconnections from the equatorial Pacific. Mon. Weather Rev. 97, 163–172 (1969).
Dagan, G., Yeheskel, N. & Williams, A. I. L. Radiative forcing from aerosol-cloud interactions enhanced by large-scale circulation adjustments. Nat. Geosci. 16, 1092–1098 (2023).
McCulloch, D., Webb, M. J., Lambert, F. H. & Vallis, G. K. Weakening tropical deep convection reduces subtropical low clouds via lower free-tropospheric moisture convergence in a climate model. Preprint at https://www.authorea.com/doi/full/10.22541/au.175407740.01003894 (2025).
Held, I. M. & Soden, B. J. Robust responses of the hydrological cycle to global warming. J. Clim. 19, 5686–5699 (2006).
Vecchi, G. A. & Soden, B. J. Global warming and the weakening of the tropical circulation. J. Clim. 20, 4316–4340 (2007).
Fasullo, J. T., Rosenbloom, N. & Buchholz, R. A multiyear tropical Pacific cooling response to recent Australian wildfires in CESM2. Sci. Adv. 9, eadg1213 (2023).
Zhu, Y., Mann, G., Newman, P. A. & Randel, W. The Hunga volcanic eruption atmospheric impacts report. APARC IPO, APARC report 11, https://doi.org/10.34734/FZJ-2025-05237 (2025).
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Reflecting Sunlight: Recommendations for Solar Geoengineering Research and Research Governance (The National Academies Press, 2021).
Feingold, G. et al. Physical science research needed to evaluate the viability and risks of marine cloud brightening. Sci. Adv. 10, eadi8594 (2024).
Hill, S. & Ming, Y. Nonlinear climate response to regional brightening of tropical marine stratocumulus. Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, L15707 (2012).
Xing, C. Subtropical marine cloud brightening suppresses the El Niño–Southern Oscillation. Earths Future 13, e2025EF006522 (2025).
Rasch, P. J., Latham, J. & Chen, C.-C. J. Geoengineering by cloud seeding: influence on sea ice and climate system. Environ. Res. Lett. 4, 045112 (2009).
Bednarz, E. M., Haywood, J. M., Visioni, D., Butler, A. H. & Jones, A. How marine cloud brightening could also affect stratospheric ozone. Sci. Adv. 11, eadu4038 (2025).
Forster, P. et al. in Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (eds Masson-Delmotte, V. et al.) 923–1054 (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2021).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Satellite and ocean data reveal marked increase in Earth’s heating rate. Geophys. Res. Lett. 48, e2021GL093047 (2021).
Kramer, R. J. et al. Observational evidence of increasing global radiative forcing. Geophys. Res. Lett. 48, e2020GL091585 (2021).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Observational assessment of changes in Earth’s energy imbalance since 2000. Surv. Geophys. 45, 1757–1783 (2024).
Mauritsen, T. et al. Earth’s energy imbalance more than doubled in recent decades. AGU Adv. 6, e2024AV001636 (2025).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Continuity in top-of-atmosphere Earth radiation budget observations. J. Clim. 37, 6093–6108 (2024).
KISS Continuity Study Team. Toward a US framework for continuity of satellite observations of Earth’s climate and for supporting societal resilience. Earths Future 12, e2023EF003757 (2024).
NASA/LARC/SD/ASDC. CERES Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF) TOA and Surface Monthly means data in netCDF Edition 4.2.1. https://doi.org/10.5067/TERRA-AQUA-NOAA20/CERES/EBAF_L3B004.2.1 (2025).
NASA/LARC/SD/ASDC. CERES Monthly Daytime Mean Regionally Averaged Terra and Aqua TOA Fluxes and Associated Cloud Properties Stratified by Optical Depth and Effective Pressure Edition4A. https://doi.org/10.5067/Terra-Aqua/CERES/FLUXBYCLDTYP-MONTH_L3.004A (2020).
NASA/LARC/SD/ASDC. CERES and GEO-Enhanced TOA, Within-Atmosphere and Surface Fluxes, Clouds and Aerosols Monthly Terra-Aqua Edition4A. https://doi.org/10.5067/TERRA+AQUA/CERES/SYN1DEGMONTH_L3.004A (2017).
NOAA Climate Prediction Center. Oceanic Niño Index (ONI). https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/data/indices/oni.ascii.txt (2026).
Rossow, W. B. & Schiffer, R. A. Advances in understanding clouds from ISCCP. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. 80, 2261–2287 (1999).
Doelling, D. R. et al. Geostationary enhanced temporal interpolation for CERES flux products. J. Atmos. Ocean. Technol. 30, 1072–1090 (2013).
Gristey, J. J. et al. Insights into the diurnal cycle of global Earth outgoing radiation using a numerical weather prediction model. Atmos. Chem. Phys. 18, 5129–5145 (2018).
Loeb, N. G. et al. Toward optimal closure of the Earth’s top-of-atmosphere radiation budget. J. Clim. 22, 748–766 (2009).
Kuma, P., Bender, F. A. & Jönsson, A. R. Climate model code genealogy and its relation to climate feedbacks and sensitivity. J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst. 15, e2022MS003588 (2023).
Krasting, J. P. et al. NOAA-GFDL GFDL-ESM4 model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.859 (2018).
Guo, H. et al. NOAA-GFDL GFDL-CM4 model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.9242 (2018).
NASA Goddard Institute For Space Studies (NASA/GISS). NASA-GISS GISS-E2.1G model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.7127 (2018).
NASA Goddard Institute For Space Studies (NASA/GISS). NASA-GISS GISS-E2.1G model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.2074 (2020).
Boucher, O. et al. IPSL IPSL-CM5A2-INCA model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.13661 (2020).
Boucher, O. et al. IPSL IPSL-CM5A2-INCA model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.15667 (2020).
Boucher, O. et al. IPSL IPSL-CM6A-LR model output prepared for CMIP6 GeoMIP G6sulfur. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/esgf/cmip6.5059 (2020).
Tatebe, H. & Watanabe, M. MIROC MIROC6 model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.5603 (2018).
Shiogama, H., Abe, M. & Tatebe, H. MIROC MIROC6 model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.898 (2019).
Tang, Y. et al. MOHC UKESM1.0-LL model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.6113 (2019).
Good, P. et al. MOHC UKESM1.0-LL model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.1567 (2019).
Swart, N. C. et al. CCCma CanESM5 model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.3610 (2019).
Swart, N. C. et al. CCCma CanESM5 model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.1317 (2019).
Danabasoglu, G. NCAR CESM2 model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.7627 (2019).
Danabasoglu, G. NCAR CESM2 model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.2201 (2019).
Danabasoglu, G. NCAR CESM2-WACCM model output prepared for CMIP6 GeoMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.10025 (2019).
Wieners, K.-H. et al. MPI-M MPI-ESM1.2-LR model output prepared for CMIP6 CMIP historical. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.6595 (2019).
Wieners, K.-H. et al. MPI-M MPIESM1.2-LR model output prepared for CMIP6 ScenarioMIP. Earth System Grid Federation. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.793 (2019).
Niemeier, U. et al. MPI-M MPI-ESM1.2-LR model output prepared for CMIP6 GeoMIP G6sulfur. Earth System Grid. https://doi.org/10.22033/ESGF/CMIP6.6448 (2019).
Bretherton, C. S., Widmann, M., Dymnikov, V. P., Wallace, J. M. & Bladé, I. The effective number of spatial degrees of freedom of a time-varying field. J. Clim. 12, 1990–2009 (1999).
Met Office. Cartopy: a cartographic Python library with a Matplotlib interface. https://cartopy.readthedocs.io (2010–2015).
Zhang, J. Analytical and plotting scripts for “Earth’s east–west albedo symmetry”. https://csl.noaa.gov/groups/csl9/datasets/data/2026-Zhang/ (2026).
Xu, R. et al. Contrasting impacts of forests on cloud cover based on satellite observations. Nat. Commun. 13, 670 (2022).
Leung, G. R., Grant, L. D. & van den Heever, S. C. Deforestation-driven increases in shallow clouds are greatest in drier, low-aerosol regions of Southeast Asia. Geophys. Res. Lett. 51, e2023GL107678 (2024).
Dror, T. & Feingold, G. Amazon forest loss: an all-sky biophysical top-of-atmosphere cooling feedback. Science 392, 429–432 (2026).
Sévellec, F., Fedorov, A. V. & Liu, W. Arctic sea-ice decline weakens the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. Nat. Clim. Change 7, 604–610 (2017).
Liu, W., Fedorov, A. & Sévellec, F. The mechanisms of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation slowdown induced by Arctic sea ice decline. J. Clim. 32, 977–996 (2019).
Weijer, W. Interactions between the Arctic Mediterranean and the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation: a review. Oceanography 35, 118–127 (2022).
