To better understand the energy budget of the four suites in the advanced physics test, model forecasts were compared against the Surface Radiation Budget Network (SURFRAD) date and NASA's Clouds and the Earth Radiant Energy System (CERES) satellite products.

The figure above illustrates the downward shortwave radiation at the Penn State, PA SURFRAD station, averaged for all forecasts initialized at 00 UTC during the winter season (DJF). Suites 1-3 exhibit a high bias, with Suite 4 performing closest to observations. Additional figures for outgoing/incoming longwave/shortwave radiation for forecast mean and mean error can be found here. The figure below displays upward shortwave radiation at the top of the atmosphere for CERES, 10-day forecasts of Suite 1, and their difference, for the northern hemisphere winter. The negative values in the difference field indicate a deficit in albedo. Additional figures of top of the atmosphere shortwave, longwave and energy balance for all suites can be found here.