This course introduces the nature of Earth's climate and examines the processes that maintain our climate system based on physical principles. The class is concerned primarily with the global climate and its geographic variation on different scales. Topics include the global energy balance, general circulation of the atmosphere, general circulation of the oceans, the cryosphere, the hydrologic cycle, regional to global scale climate variability such as El Nino, causes for climate change, climate feedback mechanism, and climate modeling. This course will also discuss human-induced modifications to the climate system, such as urbanization, anthropogenic global warming, desertification, and tropical deforestation, and many other climate change related issues. Upon completion of this course, students should be able to know the fundamental scientific concepts underlying our understanding of our climate system. More specifically, students will understand the basic energy and water balances in the past, current, and potential future climate system and be able to explain their roles in climate change and the impact of climate on living organisms and the human environment.
Instructor: Ping Zhu<zhup@fiu.edu>
When: Spring 2007; Tuesday 03:30-04:45pm, Thursday 03:30-04:45pm
Where: PC 425 (University Park Campus)
Co-requisite: MET3003
Grading: Homework (50%), mid-term exam (20%) and final exam (30%)
Office hours: Tu/Th, 12:30-2:30pm; Mo/We, 3:00-4:30pm.
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Dennis L. Hartmann, Global Physical Climatology,
Academic Press |
This is a non-exhaustive list of additional textbooks that cover aspects of the syllabus.
Ann Henderson-Sellers & Peter Robinson, Contemporary Climatology , Prentice Hall, 1999
R. G. Barry & R.J. Chorley, Atmosphere, Weather & Climate, 8th Edition
Sellers, William, Physical Climatology , 1965.
Trenberth, Kevin E., Ed., Climate System Modeling , Cambridge Univ. Press.