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Climate and Climate Change
http://www.atmos.washington.edu/2007Q1/211
Discussion Forum for this Course
Final exam review sheet
Midterm 2 review sheet
Midterm 1 review sheet
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Image descriptions Top-left: Ocean surface temperature off the
east coast of the US; the red and orange show the warm Gulf Stream Current.
Top-center: An intense North-Pacific storm off the coast of BC and the
Northwest. Top-right: The Larsen Ice Shelf, in Antarctica, which collapsed
in 2002. Bottom-left: The Earth photographed by Apollo 17 Astronauts when
they were 28,000 miles above the surface. Bottom-center: A satellite image
of the Antarctic ozone hole in September 2000. Bottom-right: A satellite
image showing the amount of plant productivity in the Western Hemisphere. Larger versions and more information are available here. |
Class Meeting Times and Location:
Monday and Wednesday from 10:30 to 11:20 in Law
127,
Tuesday and Thursday from 10:30 to 11:20 in Kane 130, and
Section on Friday either from 10:30 to 11:20 or
from 11:30 to 12:20 in Balmer
302.
Office: room 506 in the Atmospheric Sciences & Geophysics Building
Office hours: Tuesday 11:30–12:30
e-mail: thornton@atmos.washington.edu (emails will be answered within 48 hrs)
Teaching Assistant: Steve Hudson
Office: room 523 in the Atmospheric Sciences & Geophysics Building
Office hours: Wednesday 2:00–4:00
e-mail: hudson@atmos.washington.edu
An introductory course for nonscience majors on climate and climate change. The class will be divided in three parts:
- Climate of the present. We will examine the nature of the global climate system and the main processes controlling climate. Topics covered will include the global energy balance, atmospheric circulation, the role of oceans and ice in climate, the carbon cycle, atmospheric composition.
- Climate of the past. In this part of the class we will discuss how climate changed in the past on timescales ranging from billions of years to thousands of years.
- Climate of the future. Is the Earth getting warmer? Why? How will climate change over the next 100 years? Should we be concerned? These are some of the current major environmental concerns which we will discuss in class.
Course Goals
(1) Learn about the climate system from modern instrumentation and theory.
(2) Learn about Earth's past climates and the evolution of life, environment,
and atmospheric composition as a context for understanding modern climate change.
(3) Learn the science necessary to understand modern environmental problems,
especially from increasing greenhouse gases and ozone depleting chemicals. Empower
students to participate in the debate over how to respond to global warming.
See the syllabus
for a more detailed description.