General Circulation of the Atmosphere

ATM 240 - 2006

Instructor: R. Grotjahn

phone: (530) 752-2246

email: grotjahn@ucdavis.edu

Class meets: 10:30 am - 12:20 pm T,Th in Room 124 Hoagland

Office hours: TBA in Rm 231 Hoagland, drop in or make an (informal) appointment (recommended)

Not available:

the hour before this class, AND also:

11:00 am - 1:30 pm M, W (ATM 10)

1:00 pm - 2:00 pm T (ATM 10)

and some Wednesday afternoons...

Class webpage: http://atm.ucdavis.edu/~grotjahn/course/atm240/index.html

COURSE GOALS: To develop a broad understanding of the large scale properties of the Earth's atmosphere. A comprehensive presentation of atmospheric observations is made. This is followed by some simple theories to explain various observed features.

COURSE FORMAT: The text for the course is Global Atmospheric Circulations, Observations and Theories, by R. Grotjahn. The book was derived directly from lectures given in this course, so it does not make sense to repeat in class exactly what is already written in the book. Students should read the assigned material before coming to the class meeting (except for the first meeting). An errata document can be accessed from my ATM240 course homepage for the general circulation book. It is recommended that you print out a hardcopy for yourself.

The lecture will begin with a brief summary of the previous lecture period. This is often a good time to ask questions you may have regarding the previous lecture material. The next 70-90 minutes of the class period will be a semi-formal lecture on the most important points in the reading assigned for that meeting. (A list of subjects and reading for each meeting is attached.) The remaining time is left for homework discussion or other questions.

Each lecture will be organized around a study list of concepts. A study guide for each lecture is posted on the course website. Please consult these prior to each class meeting. To add some variety, we may solicit student comments on some items in the study list. In a departure from the order in the text, some lectures “toggle” between chapter sections showing observations and sections showing theories in an effort to show strongly how the simple theories explain various observed properties.

GRADING: Grading will be based upon the final and the homework. Approximately one homework assignment per week will be handed out. A midterm and a final exam are anticipated. Grading is usually based upon homework (65%) and final (35%).

Note: Due to the reduced number of Thursday days this quarter, we will not have a midterm.