Home |
Syllabus |
Schedule |
Homework |
Project |
Extra Credit |
Links |
Climate and Climate Change
http://www.atmos.washington.edu/2008Q1/211
Discussion Forum for this Course
Email JT or BVS after 3/21 for grade, paper, and poster information.
Thanks.
| 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:
M, Tu, W, Th: 10:30 to 11:20 in JHN 075 (Lecture)
F: AA 10:30 - 11:20 in MGH 389 / AB 11:30 - 12:20 in MGH 214 (Discussion)
Office: room 506 in the Atmospheric Sciences & Geophysics Building
Office hours: Tu, 4:00 - 5:00pm, ATG 506
e-mail: thornton@atmos.washington.edu (emails will be answered within 48 hrs)
Teaching Assistant: Brian Smoliak
Office: room 511 in the Atmospheric Sciences & Geophysics Building
Office hours: Tu, 5:00 - 6:00pm, ATG 406 / W, 9:00 - 10:00am, ATG 627
e-mail: bsmoliak@atmos.washington.edu
An introductory course for non-science majors on
climate and climate change. The ultimate goal is to provide the
students with a concise fundamental understanding of the chemical and
physical processes which control Earth's climate so that they can
use this knowledge to be informed participants in future environmental
policy debates.
To achieve this goal we will synthesize a wide array
of scientific concepts and current thinking on the processes which
control Earth's climate, divided into three parts:
- Climate of the present. We will examine the nature of the global climate system and the factors controlling its present state. Topics covered will include the global energy balance, the greenhouse effect, atmospheric circulation, the role of oceans and ice in climate, the carbon cycle, and ozone.
- 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. And we will use this information to help understand what future climates might be like.
- Climate of the future.
Is global warming real? Why/Why not? How will climate change over the
next 100 years? Should we be concerned? What are technologies for
potentially addressing human-induced global climate change?
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.