Statistical Evaluation of Changes in Surface Radiative Flux Across Different Sites in West Africa

Surface Radiative Fluxes (SRFs) have far‐reaching impacts in many areas, such as climate, energy and health, which pose huge challenges for various operational applications. In this study, we assess the variability of SRF over West Africa by using multi‐year observational data from seven sites located in the Sudanian climate of Benin (Bellefoungou and Nalohou), the Sahelian climate in Niger (Wankama North and South) and Mali (Agoufou, Bamba and Kobou). Using wavelet transform (WT) and principal component analysis (PCA), we found at all sites a characteristic distribution of radiation flux components with two distinct periods of variability (4–8 and 8–16 months). Sites located within the Sahelian climate showed higher amounts in all components of SRF and air temperature. Furthermore, the PCA results reveal that these variabilities stem from the land–atmosphere changes due to the West African monsoon (WAM). The first principal component (PC1) accounts for the largest proportion of total variance, ranging from 22.37% at Nalohou to 57.27% at Bamba, reflecting surface thermal characteristics across all sites during the wet season. Similarly, the second PC explains the behaviour of SRF due to both albedo and cloud‐free nature of the atmosphere during the dry season except for the Bellefoungou site. The wavelet coherence further confirmed the agreement between air temperature and incoming shortwave and outgoing longwave radiation. These findings may advance our understanding of land–atmosphere interactions and will contribute to improving further the reliability of weather forecasts.