Convection is much more important than conduction in transporting heat within the troposphere. Heat is also transported horizontally within the atmosphere and the process is called advection . The process of heat transport by both conduction and convection is known as sensible heating . No mass is exchanged and no medium is required. It is the main transport of energy between the sun and the earth-atmosphere system.
All objects absorb and emit radiation.
At radiative equilibrium , absorption balances emission and the temperature of the object is constant. If absorption exceeds emission, the temperature rises, and if emission exceeds absorption, the temperature falls. It is first proposed by Scottish chemist Joseph Black in 1760. The specific heat of all substances is measured relative to the specific heat of water, which has the highest value. The differences in specific heats is one of the reasons why surface temperatures over land is more varibale than over ocean.