Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences course catalog

All 69 recorded UW–Madison courses in this department, including courses not offered this term. Open a course for prerequisites, historical grades and instructors.

• AGROECOL/ATMOCN/BOTANY/ENTOM/ENVIRST/GEOG/ZOOLOGY 953: Introduction to Ecology Research at Uw-madison

  1–2 credits

  Introduction to diverse ecological research across the UW-Madison Campus. Discussions on adapting to graduate school and graduate-level ecological research, key topics in professional development, and research presentations by faculty members.

• ATMOCN 100: Weather and Climate

  3 credits

  Nature and variability of wind, temperature, clouds and precipitation. Storm systems, fronts, thunderstorms, tornadoes and their prediction. Air composition and pollution. Global winds, seasonal changes, climate and climatic change.

• ATMOCN 101: Weather and Climate

  4 credits

  Nature and variability of wind, temperature, clouds and precipitation. Storm systems, fronts, thunderstorms, tornadoes and their prediction. Air composition and pollution. Global winds, seasonal changes, climate and climatic change. Includes map analyses and basic quantitative lab exercises.

• ATMOCN 141: Natural Hazards of Weather

  Credits unavailable

  Explores the basic science of weather hazards ongoing around the globe and practical issues of Prediction, Risk Reduction, Resilience and Vulnerability (PRRRV) associated with these hazards.

• ATMOCN 201: Explorations of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

  Credits unavailable

  Exploration of a field within atmospheric and oceanic sciences. Exposure to scientific principles, current findings, and career routes as it applies to topics such as meteorology, weather systems and weather forecasting, climate and climate change, atmospheric satellite remote sensing, oceanography, and professional careers in the discipline.

• ATMOCN 310: Dynamics of the Atmosphere and Ocean I

  3 credits

  Introduction to theory of fluid motions for atmosphere and ocean. Elementary kinematics, fundamental forces, effects of earth's gravity and rotation, concepts and applications of hydrostatic and geostrophic balance.

• ATMOCN 311: Dynamics of the Atmosphere and Ocean II

  Credits unavailable

  Intermediate theory of fluid motions for atmosphere and ocean. Emphasis on large scale applications and basic theory for geophysical wave types. Thermal wind shear, frictional flow, vorticity concepts, Rossby waves, Sverdrup ocean flow.

• ATMOCN 330: Physics of the Atmosphere and Ocean I

  3 credits

  Physical variables, laws, characteristics and direct measurements for atmosphere and ocean. Thermodynamics and moist atmospheric processes. Basic physics of clouds, precipitation, and chemical constituents.

• ATMOCN 340: Physics of the Atmosphere and Ocean II

  Credits unavailable

  Radiation, energy budget, and cloud physics. Scattering, absorption, emission and diabatic heating by shortwave and longwave processes. Introduction to cloud physics including cloud nucleation processes, particle growth, precipitation development, and convective cloud processes.

• ATMOCN 401: Topics in Meteorology

  2–3 credits

  Special topics to be given as the need and opportunity arise.

• ATMOCN 404: Meteorological Measurements

  3 credits

  Practical experience in planning experiment implementation, performing instrument quality control, conducting computational data analysis, and writing and presenting of meteorological and climatological observations in a team setting.

• ATMOCN 405: Aos Senior Capstone Seminar

  Credits unavailable

  Provides synthesis and overview. Research on topic of the student's choosing is presented at the end.

• ATMOCN 425: Global Climate Processes

  Credits unavailable

  Overview of physical processes of the atmosphere and its coupling to the ocean and land. Understanding its seasonal climatology and variability. Synthesis through application of junior AOS core dynamics and physics to quantitatively understand diabatic, transport, and dissipative processes. Examples include global warming, air-ocean coupling, ENSO, ozone hole, tropospheric water and chemistry issues, diurnal to interannual time scales.

• ATMOCN 441: Radar and Satellite Meteorology

  3 credits

  Provides necessary knowledge about radar and satellite meteorology.

• ATMOCN 452: Synoptic Laboratory I: the Frontal Cyclone

  4 credits

  Cyclone and frontal theory; case studies illustrating the structure and evolution of the frontal cyclone; diagnostic techniques: interpretation of satellite photographs, preparation of vertical cross sections and isentropic analysis.

• ATMOCN 453: Synoptic Laboratory Ii: Mesoscale Meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Local wind systems, thunderstorms, mesoscale convection systems, interactions with synoptic scale weather. Analysis, prediction, nowcasting and observation of mesoscale weather, including interpretation of satellite and radar information.

• ATMOCN 460: Fundamentals of Physical Oceanography

  Credits unavailable

  Introduction to the physics and thermodynamics of the ocean. Learn about the the physical characteristics and properties of the ocean and its circulation. Covers the basic equations of motion including the mathematics of Ekman transport, Sverdrup balance, thermal wind balance, ocean heat, salinity, and momentum conservation and budgets, waves, and tides.

• ATMOCN 522: Tropical Meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Characteristics of the tropical atmosphere; local and diurnal phenomena; tropical synoptic systems; circulation and energetics; mechanisms of tropical climate variations.

• ATMOCN 573: Research Computing in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

  3 credits

  Hands-on introduction to open-source research computing tools commonly used in the atmospheric and oceanic sciences. Covers Python basics, including standard data structures, environments, and packages that are useful for analyzing and visualizing a variety of observational and computational atmospheric and oceanic science datasets. Additional open-source tools for version control, sharing code, and collaborating on analysis are also introduced and open science best practice are discussed.

• ATMOCN 575: Climatological Analysis

  Credits unavailable

  Mathematical and statistical tools applicable to the investigation of climatological problems; nature and treatment of climatological data.

• ATMOCN 610: Geophysical Fluid Dynamics I

  3 credits

  Basic dynamic concepts: equations of motion, basic approximations, Coriolis force, wave motions, normal modes, gravity waves, frictional turbulence and convective processes, geostrophic adjustment, scaling argument, effects of rotation on wave motions. Vorticity and potential vorticity.

• ATMOCN 611: Geophysical Fluid Dynamics II

  Credits unavailable

  Quasi-geostrophic motion, potential vorticity equations, E-P fluxes, Rossby waves, boundary layer processes, wind-driven ocean circulation and western boundary currents, barotropic and baroclinic instability, tropical flows.

• ATMOCN 630: Introduction to Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics

  3 credits

  Covers thermodynamics theory of multiphase systems, thermodynamic analysis of atmosphere, microphysical processes in the atmosphere, atmospheric and oceanic chemical processes, conduction of heat and moisture into the atmosphere from ocean and land surface.

• ATMOCN 637: Cloud Physics

  3–4 credits

  Processes of cloud formation, growth, and dissipation from the standpoint of both the cloud particles and the whole cloud as a dynamic entity.

• ATMOCN 640: Radiation in the Atmosphere and Ocean

  Credits unavailable

  Introduction to radiation: basic laws, radiative transfer under clear sky conditions, scattering by individual particles, multiple scattering, radiative properties of clouds and aerosols, energy budget, miscellaneous applications.

• ATMOCN 660: Introduction to Physical Oceanography

  3 credits

  Physical properties of sea water: ocean climatology, water, salt and heat budget, measurements, ocean circulation and water mass of the world ocean, thermocline, thermohaline, equatorial ocean and southern ocean.

• ATMOCN 681: Senior Honors Thesis

  3 credits

  Individual mentored study for seniors completing theses for Honors in the Major as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 682: Senior Honors Thesis

  3 credits

  Individual mentored study for seniors completing theses for Honors in the Major as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 691: Senior Thesis

  2–3 credits

  Individual mentored study for seniors completing theses, as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 692: Senior Thesis

  2–3 credits

  Individual mentored study for seniors completing theses, as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 698: Directed Study

  1–5 credits

  Independent study as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 699: Directed Study

  1–5 credits

  Independent study as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN 712: General Circulation of the Atmosphere

  Credits unavailable

  The theory of the general circulation with emphasis on the sources, sinks, and transport of mass, angular momentum, and energy that serve to maintain the circumpolar vortex.

• ATMOCN 718: Dynamics of Moist Convective Systems

  Credits unavailable

  Governing equations for non-hydrostatic dynamics, mixed phase thermodynamics and microphysics. Cumulus parameterization and scale interactions. Application to theoretical and numerical models of thunderstorms (and attendant weather phenomena) and Mesoscale Convective Systems in the extra tropics and tropics.

• ATMOCN 722: Advanced Tropical Meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Advanced treatment of the fundamentals of tropical meteorology, including moist thermodynamic processes, tropical deep convection, convective quasi-equilibrium, the weak temperature gradient approximation, the mean tropical circulations, convectively coupled waves, and tropical cyclones.

• ATMOCN 751: The Frontal Cyclone

  3 credits

  Application of fundamental dynamics and thermodynamics to cyclone and frontal theory; case studies illustrating the structure and evolution of the frontal cyclone; diagnostic consideration of vertical motions, frontogenesis and potential inversion; computational analysis of fundamental diagnostic equations, analysis of vertical cross sections.

• ATMOCN 753: Mesoscale Meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Synthesizes the fundamentals of atmospheric dynamics, thermodynamics and microphysics to explain the theory behind the structure, evolution and prediction of microscale, mesoscale and cloud scale weather. Learn the dynamics, and thermodynamics of mesoscale, fogs, cumulus, and severe storms (including tornadoes), mountain meteorology and convective tropical weather systems (including hurricanes and typhoons) and application of multi-scale numerical methods and models for analysis and prediction.

• ATMOCN 760: Large-scale Ocean-atmosphere Coupling

  Credits unavailable

  Various aspects of global ocean-atmosphere coupling and climate variability; global surface flux distribution; mixed layer dynamics; tropical dynamics and El Nino and Southern Oscillation; extratropical ocean-atmosphere coupling; interannual to interdecadal climate variability.

• ATMOCN 773: Boundary Layer Meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Observations of and theories for boundary layers, turbulence, spectra, plumes, dust devils, convection, terrain effects, and other phenomena in the lowest 2 km of the atmosphere.

• ATMOCN 775: Advanced Climatological Analysis

  Credits unavailable

  Application and analysis of advanced statistical, mathematical, and machine learning tools in Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Climate Sciences. Emphasizes application of statistical techniques to synthetic and real data; analysis of existing research in Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Climate Sciences; and exploration of new applications of statistical and machine learning techniques in relevant scientific literature. Knowledge of basic statistical methods and statistical programming [such as those introduced in 575] is required

• ATMOCN 801: Topics in Theoretical Meteorology

  2–3 credits

  Advanced level subjects in dynamics, synoptics, climate-dynamics and atmospheric physics including recent advances.

• ATMOCN 810: Practical Training in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences I

  Credits unavailable

  Practical training in atmospheric and oceanic sciences. Provides direct, hands-on exposure to careers in the discipline. Includes placement into student-designed or existing internship in atmospheric and oceanic science related companies, agencies, and organizations.

• ATMOCN 811: Practical Training in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences II

  Credits unavailable

  Practical training in atmospheric and oceanic sciences. Provides direct hands-on exposure to careers in the discipline. Continues the internship in atmospheric and oceanic science related companies, agencies, and organizations. Develop a portfolio of items necessary for the American Meteorological Society Certified Consulting Meteorology exam.

• ATMOCN 900: Seminar-meteorology

  Credits unavailable

  Discussion of the philosophy of science, communication, and history of atmospheric and oceanic science topics.

• ATMOCN 901: Foundations of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Research

  1 credits

  Discussions on adapting to graduate school and graduate-level research, history and future of discipline, research ethics, issues of diversity and inclusion.

• ATMOCN 902: Scientific Communications in the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

  Credits unavailable

  Written and oral communication about topics related to graduate research.

• ATMOCN 903: Research Advances in the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

  1 credits

  Discussions on philosophy of science, literature review, development of ideas in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, training in proposal writing, and preparation for Ph.D. dissertation proposal in advance of preliminary exam.

• ATMOCN 965: Seminar-oceanography

  Credits unavailable

  Advanced topics in oceanography.

• ATMOCN 990: Research

  1–12 credits

  Research with atmospheric and oceanic science faculty advisors.

• ATMOCN 999: Advanced Independent Study

  1–6 credits

  Advanced independent study as arranged with a faculty member.

• ATMOCN/BOTANY/CIVENGR/ENVIRST/GEOSCI/ZOOLOGY 911: Limnology and Marine Science Seminar

  1 credits

  Sections in various fields of zoological research.

• ATMOCN/BOTANY/ENVIRST/GEOG/GEOSCI/ZOOLOGY 980: Earth System Science Seminar

  Credits unavailable

  Topics in earth system science. Emphasis on the coupling between atmospheric, oceanic and land surface systems, involving physical geochemical and biological processes, and including interactions with human systems.

• ATMOCN/BSE/SOILSCI 132: Water and People

  Credits unavailable

  Water is central to the functioning of planet Earth and is influential to shaping many historical and present-day cultures across the globe. As humans increase their impact on Earth's water cycle, our understanding of the multiple roles of water becomes critical to finding sustainable strategies for human and ecosystem health. Explore different perspectives around cultural significance of, engagement with, and access to water, with particular focus to case studies from the United States. Identify the human influence on water quality and quantity in a changing global climate, from local, regional, and global perspectives, and how different racial and ethnic communities in the United States are differentially impacted.

• ATMOCN/CIVENGR 701: The Chemistry of Air Pollution

  Credits unavailable

  Covers background and modern research methods for the application of chemical analysis tools to understanding of the origin, composition, and the chemical transformations of pollutants that occur in the atmosphere. Emphasis will be directed at the pollutants impacting human health, climate change, and ecosystem degradation. Approximately half of the course materials will be taken from the scientific literature and will provide the opportunity to advance skills in the critical reading of journal articles. The course is directed at graduate students conducting research and interested in air pollution and environmental chemistry. Gain experiences in presenting scientific research methods and results related to course materials.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST 171: Global Change: Atmospheric Issues and Problems

  Credits unavailable

  Atmospheric problems of global significance. Greenhouse warming, ozone layer, acid rain, climate change. Study based on elementary principles of atmospheric science. Systems approach applied to changing atmospheric composition. Interactions among geochemical cycles, anthropogenic inputs and other parts of the environment.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST 355: Introduction to Air Quality

  Credits unavailable

  Links chemistry and meteorology to engineering, law, policy, and public health. Presents key ideas in air quality, with focus on reactive pollutants in the outdoor environment, especially gas and particle phase chemicals that react with human tissue to cause sickness and death. Discusses environmental impacts of these pollutants and regulatory approaches for their control in the U.S. and around the world. Indoor air quality will be included. Non-reactive pollutants, especially carbon dioxide, will be compared and contrasted with reactive air pollutants.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST 520: Bioclimatology

  Credits unavailable

  How climate systems and biological organisms operate and interact at the global scale and the implications of this for climate change, ecosystem ecology and human land use.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST 745: Meteorological Satellite Applications

  Credits unavailable

  Use of satellite imagery and measurements in meteorological research and operations; orbital characteristics; navigation; instrumentation.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOG 131: Climate Change, Climate Action: the Social Dimensions of Climate Change

  3–4 credits

  The planet's climate is changing, and humans are causing it. This means that climate change is not only a topic of study for the biophysical sciences, but also for the social sciences. Focuses on the social dimensions of climate change: the social, political, environmental, and economic factors that shape the drivers and impacts of climate change and the ability of different places and communities to respond. Examines both the social problems that arise from climate change and the social solutions to mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis. How do these social dimensions shape climate change, and how does climate change shape different social dimensions? What climate solutions are being proposed, what climate solutions are already being implemented, and how can we critically evaluate the uneven impacts of those solutions across society and space?

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOG 322: Polar Regions and Their Importance in the Global Environment

  Credits unavailable

  Reviews the past, present, and future of the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Covers the history, geography, atmospheric and ocean circulations, permafrost, ice sheets, glaciers, and future state of the Arctic and Antarctica as projected by earth system models. Also explores the role of the polar regions in the earth's system and associated global climatic feedbacks.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOG 332: Global Warming: Science and Impacts

  Credits unavailable

  Offers a fundamental understanding of how and why global warming is happening and what to expect in the future. Investigate and discuss the evidence for change, the science that explains these observations, predicted impacts on humans and ecosystems, and the societal debate over proposed solutions.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOG/GEOSCI 335: Climatic Environments of the Past

  3 credits

  Climate change at timescales from the last several million years to the last 100 years, with emphasis on more recent timescales. Examines how climate variability arises from interplay between external forcings, feedbacks within the earth system, and (more recently) human activity.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOSCI 102: Climate and Climate Change

  3 credits

  Describes the basic climate principles governing the climate system. It describes the climate and climate variability at present, climate evolution in the past, and the projected climate change into the future. The scientific principles underlying the natural and anthropogenic greenhouse effect and climate model forecasts are elucidated.

• ATMOCN/ENVIRST/GEOSCI/ZOOLOGY 750: Problems in Oceanography

  3 credits

  Introduction to techniques used in the study of the biology, chemistry, geology, and physics of the marine environment.

• ATMOCN/GEOSCI 105: Survey of Oceanography

  Credits unavailable

  Nature and behavior of ocean water, interaction of oceans and atmosphere, structure of the ocean floor, life in the oceans, our relationship to the marine environment.

• ATMOCN/GEOSCI 140: Natural Hazards and Disasters

  3 credits

  An exploration of the science behind natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, landslides, tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods. Why, where, and when do these events occur, and why are some predictable but others are not? Addresses hazard assessment, forecasting, and mitigation to lessen their impact on society.

• ATMOCN/GEOSCI 353: Programming for Earth Scientists

  Credits unavailable

  Introduction to scientific programming with a focus on geoscience applications, utilizing Python as the primary programming language. Focus on gaining practical skills applicable to geoscience datasets such as analytical model implementation, time series analysis, and geospatial data visualization. Includes elementary topics in numerical computing and machine learning. The use of hands-on exercises, real-world datasets, and collaborative projects will be used to explore how to address geoscience problems with computational solutions.

• ATMOCN/GEOSCI 762: Ice and Climate Dynamics

  Credits unavailable

  Introduction to the role of ice in the climate system. Review main components of the cryosphere (Arctic and Antarctic sea ice, Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, mountain glaciers, snow cover, and permafrost), with particular focus on recent and future changes as documented in recent publications. Consider different methods to study the cryosphere and its role in the climate system, such as remote sensing and in situ observations, state estimates and reanalyses, with a particular focus on idealized and comprehensive global climate models. Covers fundamental physical concepts as well as unresolved research questions such as the debates surrounding potential instabilities in the climate system and uncertainties in future projections of ice loss, teleconnections, and sea level rise.

• ATMOCN/PLANTSCI 532: Environmental Biophysics

  3 credits

  Plant-environment interactions with particular reference to energy exchanges and water relations. Models are used to provide a quantitative synthesis of information from plant physiology, soil physics, and micrometeorology with some consideration of plant-pest interactions.