All assignments are due at the start of class on the date indicated, unless shown otherwise.
| Part I: The climate system | ||
| Date | Topic | What's due today? Reading and assignments |
| Jan 9 | Class overview. Introduction, team formation, and topic suggestions. Introduction to climate as a system. | Online textbook: Introduction. Section 1.2.1: Composition and temperature. |
| Jan 11 | Atmospheric composition and structure. Controls on climate: The global energy balance. | Online textbook: 2.1.1 The heat balance at the top of the atmosphere. 2.1.2 The greenhouse effect. |
| Jan 16 | Variations in the global energy balance. | 2.1.4 The heat balance at the top of the atmosphere: geographical distribution Submit project title and description by this date. |
| Jan 18 | Surface energy balance.
Example of a Climate News presentation. |
2.1.6 Heat balance at the surface. |
| Jan 23 | Heat transport by the atmospheric and oceanic general curculation. |
Online textbook: 2.1.5 Heat storage and transport
2.1.5.1 Heat storage 2.1.5.2 Heat transport |
| Jan 25 | The atmospheric general circulation. |
Online textbook: 1.2.2 General circulation of the atmosphere
Supplemental reading: Seidel et al. (2008), "Widening of the tropical belt in a changing climate." |
| Jan 30 | Perturbations to the atmospheric general circulation: Monsoons.
Ocean circulation: Wind driven circulations. Upwelling and downwelling. Composition and properties of ocean water. |
Online textbook: Online textbook: 1.3.1 Composition and properties.
Rahmstorf, S.: The Ocean Thermohaline Circulation: A Brief Fact Sheet |
| Feb 1 | Ocean circulation: Thermohaline cicrculation and the ocean conveyor belt. | Kent, E.C. and Taylor, P.K. 2006. Toward estimating climatic trends in SST. Part I: Methods of measurement. J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 23, 464-475. |
| Feb 6 | Interlude: A world tour of climates, including extremes. | |
| Feb 8 | El Niño and the Southern Oscillation. | Online textbook: 5.2.1 El Niño-Southern Oscillation National Center for Atmospheric Research, El Niño, La Niña, and ENSO FAQ | Feb 13 | El Niño and the Southern Oscillation (continued). Other major oscillations in the climate system. | 5.2.2 The North Atlantic Oscillation
Each team submits three essay questions for the midterm. Supplemental reading: Isaac Held, Teleconnections and stationary Rossby waves. Supplemental reading: John Nielsen-Gammon (Texas state climatologist) article on relation of global temperature trends to ENSO phase. |
| Feb 15 | Active review session for midterm exam (questions and discussion). | |
| Feb 20 | Midterm exam | |
| Part II: Climate Effects and Changes | ||
| Feb 22 | Review of midterm exam. Climate of Iowa and its surrounding region. | UN Food and Agriculture Organization summaries: Maize. Wheat. |
| Feb 27 | Climate of Iowa (continued). Climate and agriculture. | UN Food and Agriculture Organization summaries: Soybean. Sugarcane. |
| March 1 | Climate and agriculture (continued). | |
| March 5 Monday |
METED Module: Understanding the Hydrologic Cycle. | Take the quiz and forward your score report (not the completion certificate) to agron406@gmail.com by 11:59 pm. Late quizzes will not be accepted. |
| March 6 | The hydrologic cycle and water resources. | |
| Mar 8 | The hydrologic cycle and water resources (continued). | |
| Mar 13 | Spring Break | Rest and relaxation. |
| Mar 15 | Spring Break | Fun in the sun (or snow, or rain). |
| Mar 20 | No class meeting. Class is replaced with online module (see March 6). | |
| Mar 22 | In-class workday for climate reports. Attendance required. | Readiness quiz for climate reports. |
| Mar 27 | Climate data sources. Causes of natural climate changes. |
Readings: NASA, Paleoclimatology: The Oxygen Balance. National Climatic Data Center, Paleo proxy data.
Online textbook: 5.4.1 Variations of the orbital parameters and of the insolation.
5.4.2 Orbital theory of paleoclimates.
Complete plagiarism tutorial and "Post-Test Your Knowledge" quiz by start of class. A letter grade will be deducted from your climate report if you do not achieve a passing score (at least 8/10) on the post-test by this deadline. |
| Mar 29 | Causes of natural climate changes (continued).
Richard Alley lecture: The Biggest Control Knob. Discussion. |
View the Alley video and take notes in preparation for discussion. Annotated bibliography for climate report due by start of class. |
| Apr 3 | Anthropogenic climate change: Changes to atmospheric composition. |
Reading: "Bad Greenhouse"
Materials for class: Summary for Policymakers: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report, Working Group I. |
| Apr 5 | Anthropogenic climate change: Changes to land use. | Materials for class: Summary for Policymakers: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report, Working Group I. |
| Apr 10 | Understanding and predicting climate change: Climate models. Projected global climate changes, including changes to extremes. | Materials for class: Summary for Policymakers: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report, Working Group I. and Summary for Policymakers: Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation |
| Apr 12 | Understanding and predicting climate change: Scenarios. Sea level rise simulator. | Bring a laptop or tablet to class.
Written climate reports due. Remember, late reports are not accepted for any reason! |
| Apr 17 | Poster presentations of climate reports. | Schedule of presentations |
| Apr 19 | Poster presentations of climate reports. | Schedule of presentations |
| Apr 24 | Farmer adaptation to and attitudes toward climate change. | |
| Apr 26 | Active review session for final exam (questions and discussion). | |
| May 2 Wednesday 9:45-11:45 am |
Final exam
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