Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This question asks to identify the specific meteorological instrument used for measuring solar radiation received from a wide field of view. Different instruments are designed to measure different components of solar radiation.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let's define the instruments listed:
(A) Pyranometer: This instrument is designed to measure global solar radiation (also called total solar radiation) on a planar surface. Global radiation consists of two components: direct solar radiation from the sun and diffuse solar radiation scattered by the atmosphere. A pyranometer has a hemispherical field of view (180 degrees) to capture radiation from the entire sky vault. This perfectly matches the description in the question.
(B) Pyrheliometer: This instrument is designed to measure only the direct beam solar radiation coming from the sun. To do this, it has a very narrow field of view and must be mounted on a solar tracker to continuously point directly at the sun.
(C) Solarimeter: This is often used as a synonym for a pyranometer. Both terms refer to an instrument that measures total solar radiation. Given that pyranometer is also an option, it is the more technical and precise term. In many contexts, they are interchangeable. However, pyranometer is the standard specific term.
(D) Sunshine recorder: This instrument does not measure the intensity (power) of solar radiation. Instead, it measures the duration of bright sunshine over a day. A common type is the Campbell-Stokes recorder, which uses a glass sphere to focus sunlight onto a card, burning a trace on it when the sun is not obscured by clouds.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The instrument that measures total (global) solar radiation over a hemispherical field of view is a pyranometer. Therefore, option (A) is the correct answer.