  A qualitative understanding of the greenhouse effect has long been available
through models based on globally- and time-averaged quantities. We examine here
a simple 864-cell climatological model that emphasizes vertical radiative
energy transport within each cell. It reproduces yearly average temperatures
obtained earlier from one of these global models and predicts a locally
distributed non-radiative flux when observed temperatures are employed as input
data. Vertical and lateral transport of latent heat do not appear explicitly in
this model. They are apparently handled well by one non-radiative flux
variable, SNR, which shows a strong latitude dependence. Only the Sahara desert
and Saudi Arabian regions appear to be complex. For those interested in
climatology and construction of climate models, our model provides constraints
upon specifying averaged non-radiative energy transport. The model is a useful
simplification for learning about radiative energy transfer into and out of
Earth?s atmosphere and for representing the results of more sophisticated
models.
