ATM SCI 350: Syllabus

Topics and Required Reading (dates are tentative)

 

Week of Topic and Required Reading
Sep 2
  • Review of basic concepts (Petty pp. 1-13)
    • atmospheric composition
    • moisture variables
    • air pressure and weight
Sep 9
  • Temperature and kinetic energy (pp. 13-48)
Sep 16 Equation of state (pp. 61-82)

  • Boyle’s Law
  • Charles’ Law
  • Avogadro’s Law
  • Dalton’s law of partial pressures
Sep 23
  • Hydrostatic equation (pp. 83-122)
    • geometric height and geopotential height
    • hypsometric equation

Sep 30

Oct 7

  • Conservation of energy (pp. 49-60)
    • thermodynamic systems
    • state and process variables
    • differentials
 Midterm Exam #1: Th Oct 10
Oct 14
  • Pressure-volume work (pp. 123-129)
    • path dependence of process variables
Oct 21
  • First Law of thermodynamics (pp. 129-136)
    • Joule’s Law
    • special forms of the First Law
Oct 28
  • Dry adiabatic processes (pp. 136-142)
    • dry adiabatic lapse rate

Nov 4

Nov 11

  • Entropy (pp. 142-151; 161-166)
    • Second Law of thermodynamics
    • consequences of the Second Law
    • the atmosphere as a heat engine
    • potential temperature
Nov 18
  • Enthalpy and sensible heat (pp. 151-161)
    • diabatic processes
Midterm Exam #2: Tues Nov 19

Nov 25

Dec 2

  • Moist processes (pp. 167-238)
    • saturation and relative humidity
    • latent heat
    • Clausius-Clapeyron equation
Dec 9
  • Atmospheric stability (pp. 239-278)
Last class: Thursday Dec 12
Final exam: Thursday Dec 19, 10:00am – noon