Bowen ratio
The ratio of sensible to latent heat fluxes from the Earth’s surface up into the atmosphere. Values are low (order 0.1) for wet surfaces like the ocean, and greater than 2 for deserts and drought regions.
Definition courtesy of IPCC AR4.
All IPCC definitions taken from Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Working Group I Contribution to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Annex I, Glossary, pp. 941-954. Cambridge University Press.