Module Identifier EA12210  
Module Title THE ATMOSPHERE AND THE WATER CYCLE  
Academic Year 2007/2008  
Co-ordinator Professor Tony Jones  
Semester Semester 1  
Other staff Dr Graham Bird  
Course delivery Lecture   20 x 1 hr  
Assessment
Assessment TypeAssessment Length/DetailsProportion
Semester Exam1.5 Hours Multiple-choice written paper, computer marked100%
Supplementary Exam1.5 Hours Same format100%

Learning outcomes

On succesful completion of this module, students should be able to demonstrate knowledge of :-


Aims

The module aims to impart an understanding of the processes that generate and control weather and climate, and of the water cycle through ocean, atmosphere and land phases.

Brief description

The Atmosphere and the Water Cycle provides the basic framework for understanding and investigating the earth-atmosphere system, the dynamics of global change and its implications for life on earth. This module aims to provide an integrated introductory knowledge of the physical interactions between terrestrial, marine and atmospheric systems.

LECTURE THEMES

  1. The climate system and global warming (2)
  2. Radiation and atmospheric structure
  3. The global heat budget
  4. The global hydrological cycle
  5. Evaporation procdesses and oceanic patterns
  6. Clouds and precipitation processes (2)
  7. The cryosphere
  8. Global patterns of runoff
  9. The General Circulation of the Atmosphere (2)
  10. Mid-latitude circulation and weather processes
  11. Tropical circulation, weather and climate
  12. Historical climate change
  13. Factors in historical climate change
  14. Storms, floods and droughts (2)
  15. Human modification of the water balance (including case studies from representative climates) (2)

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 4