Weather Dictionary / Glossary of Terms

Radiational Inversion


   Weather TermDescription / Definition
   Radiational Inversion Used interchangably with Nocturnal Inversion; a temperature inversion that develops during the night as a result of radiational cooling of the surface. Because the immediate surface (lower Boundary Layer) cools much more rapidly during these conditions than the air just above (upper Boundary Layer), a temperature inversion can be created overnight, but typically erodes quickly after sunrise.


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Data courtesy of NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration