The relationship of diffuse radiation to total radiation in Canada

The diffuse-to-total radiation correlation developed by Liu and Jordan (1960) has been extensively used by designers even though the correlation was based on only one location (Blue Hill, Massachusetts). Indirect evidence indicates the universal nature of the correlation, however, no published test or similar correlation exists for any location in Canada. The Canadian Department of Transport has, for over twenty years, published monthly tabulations of the measured incident solar radiation from various weather stations in Canada. Four of these stations, Toronto, Montreal, Goose Bay, and Resolute Bay, record both total and diffuse radiation. The present paper describes a correlation and provides a check of Liu and Jordan's method using seven years of data for each of the four above mentioned locations. (WDM)