NATS 101 Intro to Weather and

Climate Section 32: 9:00 am MWF Bio W

301

Lecturer: Prof. Xubin ZengTA: Koichi Sakacguchi

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Who Am I?

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Vital Statistics

• Office Hours: Dr. Zeng – WR 2:00-2:50 pm or by Appointment, PAS 562 621-6842Mr. Sakaguchi – MF 11:00-12:00 am, PAS 526

• Required Text: Essentials of Meteorology-An Invitation to the Atmosphere, 5th Ed. by C. Donald Ahrens

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Course DescriptionIntroduction to the science of weather processes

and climate change: atmospheric structure and composition, energy balance, clouds and precipitation, wind systems, fronts, cyclones, weather forecasting, thunderstorms, lightning, hurricanes, ozone hole, air pollution, global warming and optical phenomena.

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Course DescriptionEmphasis will be given to phenomena that have

strong impacts on human activities.

The fundamental importance of physics, chemistry and mathematics will be noted.

Atmospheric Sciences Applied Physics

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Attendance PolicyAttendance is mandatory, and I reserve the

right to tally it throughout the term.

After three unexcused absences prior to week 9, I will submit to the Office of Curriculum and Registration an administrative drop from the course and assign a grade in accordance with UA policy.

http://catalog.arizona.edu/2006-07/policies/classatten.htm

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Student BehaviorUA Code of Academic Integrity, Code of

Conduct and Student Code of Conduct are enforced in this course.

Every student is responsible for learning these codes and abiding by them. http://w3.arizona.edu/~studpubs/policies/ppmainpg.html

Students can submit complaints online at http://web.arizona.edu/~dos/uapolicies/

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Grading Policy

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Final ExaminationSection 32 (9:00 am MWF): Bio W 301

Dec 14, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm

No Exceptions per UA Policy

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Course Grading• Course Grading Scale

A 90% or higher

B 80.0-89.99%

C 65.0-79.99%

D 55.0-64.99% E < 55.0%

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ExpectationsEvery student is expected to:

• Complete all of the assigned reading before the lecture, unless you hear otherwise.

• Devote a minimum of 2 hours outside of class studying, reading, etc. for every hour of classroom lecture. Unit Credit Definition

• Attend class daily, arrive on time, leave when class is dismisseddismissed (courtesy to peer students).

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The Golden RuleInstructor and students all show:

Mutual Respect!What exemplifies respectful behavior?

No talking

No electronics

Arriving on time

Remaining seated

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Literacy RequirementsAlthough the writing requirement for this course is negligible, there is a science literacy requirement. This means that we:

• Use scientific notation for writing numbers(especially rather large or small ones).

• Specify units of physical quantities (e.g. meters for elevation, etc.).

• Attempt to quantify physical relationships.

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Announcements

Course Homepage…is functional!

http://www.atmo.arizona.edu/

Click Students and Courses

Click Course Links

Click NATS101 – Zeng

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Class Format: Lecture Days

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Importance of Atmosphere

• Necessary for a wide spectrum of features

Oceans

Clouds, Rain, Fresh Water

Erosion by Water and Wind

Life, Life on Land

Blue Skies, Red Sunsets, Twilight

Sound

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Importance of Atmosphere

• Point 1- Offers Protection

Consider surface temperatures

Without atmosphere?

0oF average, large day-night swings

Similar to the Moon’s Climate

With atmosphere…

60oF average, moderate diurnal swings

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Importance of Atmosphere

• Point 2 - Offers Protection

Consider Surface Radiation

Shields against harmful UV radiation

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Importance of Atmosphere

• Consider Survival Time

Without Food

few weeks

Without Water

few days

Without Air

few minutes

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To Understand the Atmosphere

Examine its interfaces

with land/ocean

with space Sun

Space

Earth

Atmosphere

13,000 kmIs a very thin skin99% below 50 km (31 miles)50% below 5.5 km (3.4 miles)Atmosphere Picture

Energy Flow

Solar Input =

Output to Space

Lecture 1-Nats 101 21NASA photo gallery

Note “thinness” of atmosphere in light blue

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Course Building Blocks

• Intro 1st week or so

• Energy ~2 weeks

• Moisture ~2 weeks

• Dynamics ~3 weeks

Above are interdependent

• Specific Topics ~6 weeks

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Reading Assignment

• "How to Email a Professor" Article

Homepage Link “Reading Assignments”

• Ahrens

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