Course Information
Title: GGS 670 Introduction to Atmosphere and Weather
CRN: 21334
Time: 04:30 pm-7:10 pm, Wednesdays, 01/21-05/13/2020
Location: Exploratory Hall 2312
Instructor: Prof. John Qu
Teaching Assistant (TA): Ms. Chenyang Xu (cxu8@gmu.edu)
Telephone: (703) 993-3958
Office: Room 2412, Exploratory Hall
Office Hour: Stop by 2:00-4:00PM Mondays and Wednesdays or make appointment
Course Description
This course will introduce the students to the fundamental principles upon which the atmospheric sciences are based and to provide quantitative description and interpretation of the wide range of atmospheric phenomena with an emphasis on sub-synoptic scales (i.e. weather and regional scale climate). One of the main goals of this course is not only to provide the basic knowledge of fundamentals of the atmosphere science and weather, important in our Erath system, but also to prepare students for the science of climate. This course is designed for both science majors and non-majors taking their first course in atmosphere science. We will focus on extreme weather and climate in Spring 2020.
Prerequisites
College Math (such as MATH 214) and physics (such as PHYS 262), or permission of instructor.
Schedule
| Week one | 01/22 |
Introduction to Atmosphere |
| Week two | 01/29 |
The Energy Cycle
|
| Week three | 02/05 |
Energy Balance and Temperature
|
| Week four | 02/12 |
Water in the Atmosphere
|
| Week five | 02/19 |
Observing the Atmosphere
|
| Week six | 02/26 |
Atmospheric Forces and Winds
|
| Week seven | 03/04 |
Global and Small Scale Winds
Mid-term
|
| Week eight | 03/11 |
Spring Break
|
| Week nine | 03/18 |
Atmosphere-Ocean Interactions: El Nino and Tropical cyclones
|
| Week ten | 03/25 |
Air Masses and Fronts
|
| Week eleven | 04/01 |
Extratropical Cyclones and Anticyclones
|
| Week twelve | 04/08 |
Thunderstorms and Tornadoes
|
| Week thirteen | 04/15 |
Weather and Climate Forecasting
|
| Week fourteen | 04/22 |
Past, Present and Future Climate
|
| Week fifteen | 04/29 |
Final project presentations
|
| Week sixteen | 05/13 |
Final term papers
|
Final project
Weather and atmosphere science related final presentations and final term papers are encouraged.
Grading
Grades will be based upon your performance on the homework exercies, midterm, class attendance and final term paper and presentation. The weighted contribution of each of these utems to your final grade is:
- Homework
30%
- Midterm
30%
- Final Project 30%
- Class Attendence 10%
(A=90-100, B=80-89, C=70-79,
D=60-69, F=<60)
Textbooks
Required Textbook:
“Meteorology: Understanding the Atmosphere”, Fourth Edition, by Steven A. Ackerman and John A. Knox 2014, Jones & Bartlett Learning (2014), ISBN 978-1-284-02737-2 (paperback edition), 575 pages.
Recommended References:
- Wallace, J. M., and P. V. Hobbs, Atmospheric Science: An Introductory Survey (Second Edition), Academic Press, 2006.
- Reference book: “Climatology”, By Robert V. Rohli, Anthony J. Vega, Jones & Bartlett Learning (2011), Paperback - 432 pages - ISBN 0763791016
|
