High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Direct insolation is the solar irradiance measured at a given location on Earth with a surface element perpendicular to the Sun`s rays, excluding diffuse insolation (the solar radiation that is scattered or reflected by atmospheric components in the sky). Direct insolation is equal to the solar constant minus the atmospheric losses due to absorption and scattering. While the solar constant varies with the Earth-Sun distance and solar cycles, the losses depend on the time of day (length of light`s path through the atmosphere depending on the Solar elevation angle), cloud cover, moisture content, and other impurities.