Introduction to Global Climatic Systems

Catalog description

This intermediate-level course in Climatology emphasizes geographic patterns of interannual climate variability (climate variations) and physical processes responsible for those variations (climate dynamics). Interannual climate variations include regional- to large-scale anomalies of temperature, precipitation, cloud cover, etc., that may manifest as extreme weather (drought, floods, heat and cold waves, etc.). The physical processes associated with these fluctuations include the following: interactions among climate-system components (atmosphere, biosphere, cryosphere, hydrosphere); external forcing (e.g., solar variations, volcanic activity); and long-distance interactions involving coupled atmospheric-ocean circulations, or teleconnections (El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the Arctic Oscillation (AO), and the Pacific-North America (PNA) pattern). Climatic teleconnections manifest shifts in the atmospheric pressure "centers of action", storm tracks, long waves, jet stream positions, etc. We study the patterns and processes of regional climate features such as the South Asian and West African monsoons, "nor-easter" snow storms, Arctic/Antarctic sea ice variations, the summer/winter transition in Mediterranean-type climates, the role of "blocking" in middle-latitude climate variations, etc. Also, the course examines the role of human activities in climate, particularly the "global warming" related to increases in greenhouse gases, biomass burning, desertification, deforestation and afforestation, urbanization, irrigation for agriculture, and jet aviation. A key issue addressed is the role of human activities in possibly altering the frequency and intensity of teleconnections, especially ENSO, and of severe storms (thunderstorms, tornadoes) and hurricanes. The possibilities for geo-engineering the climate are also considered. In understanding the physical processes of climate, students are better able to assess the extent humans are a factor in contemporary climate changes. Course Objectives: 1. Understand how climate variables depict the characteristic patterns of climate and its variations on local/regional to hemispheric/global scales (climate diagnostics); 2. Evaluate the physical processes responsible for those climate and weather variations and their role in regional-scale phenomena (climate dynamics); 3. Assess the role of human activities in contemporary climate changes, on scales of the urban heat island to global warming (human impacts on climate); Upon completing this course, students will understand the geographic patterns (regional to global) and physical processes associated with climate variations, trends and changes on seasonal through interannual to decadal/multi-decadal temporal scales.