Instructors: Professor James R. Holton
408A
Atmospheric Sciences Bldg., 543-4010
holton@atmos.washington.edu
and
Dr. Lynn McMurdie
624 Atmospheric Sciences Bldg.,
685-9405
mcmurdie@atmos.washington.edu
Lectures: MWF, 1:30-2:20 PM; Laboratory: T 1:30-4:20 PM
Office Hours: Prof.Holton: MW, 3:30-4:30 PM; Dr. McMurdie: by chance or appointment.
Required Tools: Pencils, ruler, protractor and calculator for manual portion of lab, as well as departmental Sun workstations for numerical exercises.
Textbook: An Introduction to Dynamic Meteorology, by J.R. Holton (Academic Press, 1992, third edition. pp. 511). We will cover chapters six through ten, and chapter thirteen.
Evaluation:
There will be regularly assigned homeworks, a midterm exam and a final exam. The evaluation procedure for the lecture portion of the course will be as follows:
Homework: 40%; Midterm 25%; Final 25%; Discussion 10%
The total class grade will be weighted 75% lecture/25% laboratory
In this course we will examine the physics associated with the lifecycle of the synoptic-scale atmospheric disturbances, and define the role of these disturbances in the general circulation of the Earth's atmosphere. We will discover the dynamics associated with atmospheric motions, including inertio-gravity waves, and the adjustment of the atmosphere to a geostrophic balance. We will also examine the rudimentary aspects of numerical weather prediction and, time permitting, the physics of fronts and frontogenesis.
The course will be presented in a lecture format, with some tutorial sessions. There is a mandatory laboratory section associated with this course. Dr. Lynn McMurdie is in charge of the laboratory. These exercises will complement and supplement the material in the lecture portion of the course.
The purpose of this laboratory is to help you gain physical insight into dynamical concepts, and to introduce you to selected computational procedures appropriate to dynamical meteorology.
Each laboratory will consist of two parts: A short introductory lecture to familiarize you with the mathematical, physical and numerical tools and concepts and a series of lab exercises applying these tools to actual cases.
Topics explored in the laboratory will include:
1. Eulerian and Lagrangian derivatives
2. Geostrophic, gradient, and measured winds
3. Finite differencing techniques
4. Temperature evolution
5. Vorticity
6. Behavior of waves
7. Diagnosing vertical motion, geopotential height
8. Baroclinic instability
9. Frontogenesis (time permitting)
The following textbooks may also be useful. They should be on four hour reserve at the library.
Holton, J.R., 1979: An Introduction to Dynamic Meteorology, Academic Press, second edition. pp. 391.
Houghton, J.T., 1986: The physics of atmospheres. Cambridge University Press, second edition. pp. 288p.
Haltiner, G.J. and R.T. Williams, 1980: Numerical prediction and dynamic meteorology. Wiley, second edition. pp. 477.
James, Ian N., 1994: Introduction to circulating atmospheres. Cambridge University Press. pp. 422.