CODE | LAS1028 | ||||||||
TITLE | Climate Change: From the Ancient Past to Alien Planets | ||||||||
UM LEVEL | I - Introductory Level | ||||||||
MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||
ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
DEPARTMENT | Centre for the Liberal Arts and Sciences | ||||||||
DESCRIPTION | This Unit breaks down the natural laws that produce the comfortable blanket that is our atmosphere and investigate the process (past and present) that drive its change. It will explore the differences between weather and climate, as well as extreme phenomena such as hurricanes, medicanes and tornadoes. Paleoclimate will be an important component of the Unit, as past catastrophes provide insight into the present as well as the future. The computer models that provide hint towards potential futures of our planet will be unboxed to understand the true extent of the climate impacts we’re facing. Finally, the Unit will conclude with a brief description of optical phenomena and exotic climates of other worlds. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the Unit the student will be able to: - Describe the atmospheric composition and circulation patterns that determine the climate; - Explain the ocean and moon’s influence on our atmosphere; - Discuss extreme events and the impact of climate change on their frequency and intensity; - Describe climate changing process such as volcanoes and the Milankovich cycles; - List catastrophic events (such as mass extinction events) and their impact on ecology; - Describe atmospheric optical properties and how they form; - Explain exotic atmospheric process occurring on other planets. 2. Skills: By the end of the Unit the student will be able to: - Interpret the difference between weather and climate; - Identify different cloud types and interpret their significance to the local weather patterns; - Interpret weather charts and forecasts; - Interpret climate statistics (especially those described in local media); - Analyze natural and anthropogenic contribution to climate change; - Explain the distinction between climate change and global warming; - Describe the atmospheric and orbital conditions of fictional worlds and their resultant climates. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: - T E Graedel and P J Crutzen, Atmospheric Change: An Earth System Perspective, W H Freeman and Company. - Acherman, S.A. & Knox, J.A. (2007). Meterology: Understanding the Atmosphere (Second Edition). [Thomson Brooks/Cole, a part of The Thomson Corporation]. Supplementary Readings: - Jeremy Colls, Air Pollution – An Introduction, E & F N Spon. - D J Malan, Physics of Lightning, English Universities Press - McIlveen, R. (2010). Fundamentals of Weather & Climate (2nd Edition). [Oxford University Press] |
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STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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LECTURER/S | James Ciarlo |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |