Thread: Does atmospheric diffusion of light the major cause of temperature

variation, and does it happen on the moon? The spherical shape of the planet causes an unequal distribution of radiation. The sun's rays must penetrate a larger volume of the atmosphere at the poles (Point A) than at the equator (Point B). Consequently, more radiation is diffused by the atmosphere before it reaches the ground in higher latitudes.

What I want to know is, does the same thing occur on the moon where hardly any atmosphere exists?

Sources, please.

The atmosphere does dissipate some of the heat from the sun, but that is small in comparison to the difference in temperature due to the angle of the sun's rays at the poles.
The same amount of sunlight is spread over a larger area when the sun is low in the sky, and that occurs on the moon as well as on Earth.