MAST 809
The Ocean and Climate Variability

Course Outline

1. Climate elements
   • Solar radiation
   • The greenhouse effect
   • Energy exchange between ocean and atmosphere
   • Variability in solar radiation
2. Fluid properties of the ocean and atmosphere
   • Atmospheric circulation
   • Atmospheric convection
   • Clouds
   • Ocean & atmosphere properties
   • Momentum transfer
3. Ocean circulation processes
   • Geostrophic currents
   • Ekman transport
   • The Sverdrup solution for the wind-driven circulation
   • Upwelling
   • Subtropical gyres
   • Western boundary currents
4. Global fluxes of water and heat
   • The hydrological cycle
   • Ocean heat transport
   • Heat content
5. Greenhouse warming: forcing agents
   • Enhanced greenhouse effect
   • Greenhouse gas changes
   • The carbon cycle
   • Other greenhouse gases
   • The ozone hole
   • Aerosols
   • Radiative forcing
6. Greenhouse warming: prediction and observation;
   Climate models
   • Predicting future climate
   • Observed climate change: the historical record
7. Greenhouse warming: detecting and impacts
   • Detection of the greenhouse effect
   • Detection and attribution
   • Impacts of global warming
   • Sea-level rise
   • Impacts of sea-level rise
   • Effects on marine ecosystems
   • Effects on terrestrial ecosystems
   • The global warming debate
8. Interannual variability: El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)
   • Time scales of climate variability
   • El Niño-Southern Oscillation
   • Oceanic elements of ENSO
   • Atmospheric elements of ENSO
   • The ENSO cycle
   • The composite El Niño vs. The 1982-83 ENSO
   • 30-60 day waves
   • Oceanic conditions
9. ENSO dynamics & interdecadal variability
   • Kelvin waves
   • Rossby waves
   • Equatorial ocean response
   • ENSO prediction
   • Interdecadal climate variability
10. International climate research, climate observations, techniques, and data
    • WCRP: WOCE, TOGA, CLIVAR (GOALS, DecCen, ACC), Gewex
    • IGBP: JGOFS, LOICZ, Globec
    • HDP
    • Climate monitoring: GCOS, GOOS, GTOS
    • Data availability
    • World Wide Web sources

MAST 809 is offered in the spring semester in alternate years. It is simultaneously available on both the Lewes and Newark campus through interactive television (ITV). It will next be offered in Spring, 1998.

For further information, please contact the instructor:

Ferris Webster.

Cannon 216, Lewes Campus
Tel: 302-645-4266
Fax: 302-645-4007
Internet ferris@udel.edu