ATMO 336 Course Outline Spring 1999
| Population and "the global trajectory" | Handout (Anthes) |
| Scientific notation and units | DLA, Appendix B, C, D |
| Time and Conversions to/from GMT | DLA, Appendix G |
| Planet Earth |
|
1. |
Basic weather measurements |
DLA, Ch.1, 1-20 |
| Cloud types | DLA, Ch. 6, 155-159 | |
| Wind speed and direction | ||
| Temperature (and natural variability) | ||
| Pressure | ||
| Precipitation | ||
| Water – Properties and Relative Humidity (RH) | DLA, Ch. 5, 129-137 | |
| Hydrologic cycle | DLA, Ch. 2, 46-48 | |
| Upper air observations | ||
| Temperature vs. altitude | ||
| Regions – "spheres" and "pauses" | ||
| Satellite imagery | ||
| Weather maps and weather forecasting | DLA, Ch. 1, 18-31 | |
| Surface maps | ||
| Upper air maps | ||
| Jet streams |
|
2. |
Composition of the atmosphere |
DLA, Ch. 2, 34-46 |
| Major gases: nitrogen (N2) and oxygen (O2) | ||
| Trace gases: | ||
| carbon dioxide (CO2) | DLA, Ch. 2, 48-55 | |
| methane (CH4) | ||
| ozone (O3) | ||
| Carbon cycle and increasing CO2 | ||
| Stratospheric ozone and ozone "holes" | DLA, Ch. 2, 55-65 | |
| CFCs and the Montreal protocol | ||
| Air pollution | ||
| Air pollution and air quality standards |
|
3. |
Energy in the atmosphere | |
| The sun, seasons, and the solar cycle | DLA, Ch. 3, 70-75 | |
| Atmospheric radiation | DLA, Ch. 3, 76-89 | |
| Earth’s energy budget and the "greenhouse" effect | DLA, Ch. 3, 89-96 | |
| Is the atmosphere warming? | DLA, Ch. 4, 98-125 |
|
4. |
Forces acting on the atmosphere |
DLA, Ch. 8, 214-226 |
| Gravity – Density and buoyancy | ||
| Pressure differences | ||
| Coriolis (Earth’s rotation) | ||
| Friction and convergence/divergence | DLA, Ch. 8, 227 |
|
5. | The atmosphere and oceans as heat engines | |
| General circulation of the atmosphere | DLA, Ch. 11, 314-319 | |
| Ocean circulations and upwelling | DLA, Ch. 11, 319-322 | |
| El-Niño – Southern Oscillation (ENSO) | DLA, Ch. 11, 322-323 |
|
6. |
Atmospheric motions |
DLA, Ch. 11, 298-313 |
| Land and sea breezes | ||
| Mountain and valley winds | ||
| Air masses, fronts, and frontal cyclones | DLA, Ch. 9, 238-258 |
|
7. |
Weather hazards | |
| Tropical storms and hurricanes | DLA, Ch. 13, 358-385 | |
| Thunderstorms | DLA, Ch. 12, 328-333, and 340-347 | |
| Lightning | DLA, Ch. 12, 334-339 | |
| Lightning protection | ||
| Tornadoes | DLA, Ch. 12, 348-355 |
|
8. |
Climate | |
| Defining and measuring a region’s climate | DLA, Ch. 14, 387-989 | |
| Factors that control a region’s climate | DLA, Ch. 14, 390-394 | |
| Causes of long-period climate variations | DLA, Ch. 14, 408-411 | |
| Earth's orbit parameters | Whyte, Fig. 2.2, p31 | |
| Volcanic eruptions | Whyte, Ch. 2, 57-58 |
|
9. |
Reconstructing past climates |
Whyte, Ch. 1, 9-27 |
| Instrumental records |
" | |
| Historical and archaeological data |
" | |
| Environmental indicators |
" | |
| Glaciers and oxygen isotope data |
" |
|
10. |
Changes in climate in the distant past | |
| The Earth Chronology | Handout | |
| Glacial/interglacial sequences | Whyte, Ch. 2, 28-37 | |
| External vs. internal forcing | ||
| "What drives Glacial Cycles?" | Scientific American | |
| Positive and negative feedback mechanisms | Whyte, Ch. 3, 84-85 | |
| The Younger Dryas Event | Whyte, Ch. 2, 37-41 |
|
11. |
Climate during the Holocene | |
| Human Evolution | Handout | |
| Development of agriculture | Handout | |
| Early civilizations | Lamb, 122-126 (Handout) | |
| The Holocene Optimum | Whyte, Ch. 2, 41-45 |
|
12. |
Climate of the last millennium | |
| Medieval optimum and the Little ice age | Whyte, Ch. 2, 45-50 | |
| Winters of the 14th century | Lamb, Ch. 11 (Handout) | |
| Twentieth century warming | Whyte, Ch. 2, 50-55 |
|
13. |
The Future | |
| Numerical models for predicting climate | DLA, Ch. 4, 108-110 | |
| Sensitivity of models to initial conditions | Whyte, Ch. 4, 94-96 | |
| Potential impacts of increasing CO2 | Whyte, Ch. 4, 106-109 | |
| The impact of Global Warming | ||
| Sea Level rise | Whyte, Ch. 5, 122-129 | |
| Ecosystems and Agriculture | Whyte, Ch. 6, 141-144 | |
| What can be done? | Whyte, Ch. 7 |
Thursday, January 28, 1999