Geography 257 (Fall 2006) – Topics in Climatology
Tuesdays 12:30p-3:30p, 575 McCone
This semesterÕs topic will be on tropical climate, dynamics of variability and change;
and with a focus on large-scale tropical precipitation.
Specific topics covered (other suggestions welcome)
The schedule (red is tentative):
|
Week and date |
Topic |
Lead |
|
1 (8/29) |
Logistics |
|
|
2 (9/5) |
Intro to tropical climate. Webster, ÒLarge-scale structure of the tropical atmosphereÓ (from Large-scale Dynamical Processes in the Atmosphere. Edited by Brian Hoskins and Robert Pearce.) |
JohnC |
|
3 (9/12) |
Monsoon: review. Webster, ÒMonsoons: Processes, predictability, and prospects for predictionÓ, sections 1-3. pdf |
NicoleS |
|
4 (9/19) |
Monsoon: review. Webster, continued (sections 4-6); and HoltonÕs bit on equatorial waves pdf. Optional: a 2002 short article on how that yearÕs forecast went haywire pdf |
NicoleS HyoSeokP |
|
5 (9/26) |
Greater tropical Atlantic: review. Xie
and Carton, ÒTropical Atlantic Variability: Patterns, Mechanisms, and
Impacts. pdf |
AndrewF |
|
6 (10/3) |
Greater tropical Atlantic: WES feedback. Xie 1999 pdf Also read the abstract and intro to Czaja et al. 2002, as well as understanding the message of their figure 2. pdf |
JohnC |
|
7 (10/10) (JC away Tue/Wed) |
No Class this week |
|
|
8 (10/17) |
Greater tropical Atlantic: Caribbean climate. Giannini et al., ÒInterannual variability of Caribbean Rainfall, ENSO, and the Atlantic OceanÓ pdf; also skim and understand the message of figs 5 and 6 of Neelin et al., ÒTropical drying trends in global warming models and observationsÓ pdf |
AndrewF |
|
9 (10/24) |
Tropical Precipitation: moist static energy budgets. Neelin and Held, ÒModeling tropical convergence based on the moist static energy budgetÓ pdf |
HyoSeokP |
|
10 (10/31) |
Tropical Precipitation: global warming. Held
and Soden, ÒRobust responses of the hydrological cycle to Global Warming. pdf |
AndrewF |
|
11 (11/7) |
ENSO – basic mechanisms. Cane (1991): Tropical Pacific ENSO models: ENSO as a mode of the coupled system – PLEASE PICK UP COPY FROM outside 547 McCONE |
HyoSeokP |
|
12 (11/14) |
ENSO teleconnections. Hoerling and Kumar, Atmospheric Response patterns associated with tropical forcing. pdf |
NicoleS |
|
13 (11/21) |
ÒPermanent El Ni–oÓ. Philander and Fedorov, ÒRole of the tropics in changing the response to Milankovitch forcing some three million years ago. pdf |
JohnC |
|
14 (11/28) |
ENSO changes in the past. Clement et al. ÒSuppression of El Nino during the
mid-Holocene by changes in the EarthÕs orbit pdf;
and Tudhope et al. ÒVariability in the El Nino Southern Oscillation through a
glacial-interglacial cycleÓ pdf |
AmyE |
|
15 (12/5) |
ENSO in a global warming world. Cane
et al. (1997): ÒTwentieth-Century Sea Surface Temperature trendsÓ pdf; and Timmermann et al. (1999) ÒIncreased
El Ni–o frequency in a climate model forced by future greenhouse warmingÓ pdf. |
JohnC |