Solar radiation as a forest management tool: a primer of principles and application. Forest Service general technical report (final)

Forests are products of solar radiation use. The sun also drives the hydrologic cycle on forested watersheds. Some basic concepts of climatology and solar radiation are summarized including earth-sun relations, polar tilt, solar energy, terrestrial energy, energy balance, and local energy. An example shows how these principles can be applied in resource management. This paper is designed to be used with an earlier report on controlling solar light and heat in a forest by managing shadow sources.