Final answer:
The statement that albedo is the reflective quality of a surface expressed as a percentage is true; it significantly influences Earth's energy balance. Absorptive surfaces mimic a perfect blackbody more than reflective surfaces.
Step-by-step explanation:
The reflective quality of a surface is indeed called its albedo and is typically expressed as a percentage. This is true. Albedo is an important factor in determining how much energy enters Earth's system because it affects how much sunlight is reflected or absorbed by a surface. A surface with a high albedo, such as snow, reflects most sunlight, whereas a darker surface with a low albedo, like an ocean or forests, absorbs more sunlight. The concept of albedo is linked to the term intensity reflection coefficient, which mathematically expresses the ratio of the intensity of the reflected wave relative to the incident (transmitted) wave.
Regarding the check your understanding question, absorptive surfaces more closely model a perfect blackbody because they absorb most of the incident energy rather than reflecting it.