RADIAÇÃO SOLAR EM PELOTAS, RS – ANÁLISE ESTATÍSTICA

The knowledge of the solar radiation (SR) and its interactions with other meteorological variables can help the planning of various activities. This variable is very important in studies of  agroclimatic zone seedling periods, potential productivity, necessity of irrigation and the development and use of the growth and culture yield models. Its also alternative source of energy in the moment that if has feeling the scarceness of the traditional source of energy. This paper reports the results of a study of the SR pattern in Pelotas, RS, Brazil, using records from the Estação Agroclimatológica de Pelotas during the 1961/2003 period (except the year of 1989). A preliminary study revealed that the SR monthly average follows the normal distribution, in all months. The results of the statistical analysis based on this assumption indicate that the SR monthly average decreases from january to june, where it reaches the highest value and increases until december, where it attains the maximum. Exactly the inverse that happens with the relative humidity. In the modelling of data to long of time, for the harmonic analysis, distinguish the annual wave with 99% of representativity