Department of
Geography
CLIMATE: Environmental Geography I (15-041-101) Dr. Kenneth M. Hinkel
Autumn, 2009 400-F Braunstein Hall
MWF, 10:00 –10:50, Zimmer Auditorium Office: 556-3430
Office Hrs: 11-12 MWF
WEB SITE: Blackboard and http://www.geography.uc.edu/~kenhinke/courses/101/
TEXTBOOK: Required:
Christopherson,
Geosystems (7th Edition)
Course Packet
available from University Bookstore
Optional:
Paperback study guide is also available
with package
ATTENDANCE and EXPECTATIONS: Students are responsible for all material presented in lecture, including additional and current information, and are expected to complete the assigned readings prior to class. It is assumed that students are proficient in the use of the Internet, that they have an active e-mail account, and that they are able to use a word processing package. Cell phones and pagers should be turned off in class.
EXAMS: Three exams will be given—two "mid-terms" and one
final. The exams are not
comprehensive. Your final grade will be
calculated using the score from Exam 3, plus the highest score from Exams 1 and
2 (the lowest will be dropped). NO
MAKEUP exams will be given.
CLASS CANCELLED: November 11 & November 27
Lecture No. Topics Assigned
1 Introduction,
The Solar System 1-15, 39-51
2 Planet
Earth: shape, relief, motion. Rotation,
geographic grid, 15-26
3 time
zones. Physical effects of rotation. Revolution, seasons. 51-57
4 Solar
inclination; RULE #1; formula and
examples. 25-35
Optional Exercise (OE) #1
5 Climate
change and astronomical forcing factors 558-563
6 Atmosphere:
Composition and trace gases. 64-83, 308-317
7 RULE #2. Thermal structure, normal
lapse rate, OE #2 61-64, 141-146
Atmospheric pressure
8 Global
patterns of insolation. Radiant energy,
electromagnetic 46-51, 115-118
spectrum,
wavelength
9 RULE #3. Three Rules
of Radiation, examples. END PT I as above
10 Interaction
of radiant energy with materials, albedo. 89-96
11 Examples,
energy losses in the atmosphere. 96-100
12 EXAM 1 (Chapts 1, 2, 3 and portions of 5, 6,
10 & 17)
Lecture No. Topics Assigned
13 Diurnal
temperature variation; air vs. surface temperature, 74-75, 100-108
surface
temperature inversion, RULES #4, 5. 118-136
14 Maritime
vs. continental locations. RULE #6. Global
patterns of as above
annual
temperature and range. OE #3.
15 Surface
energy balance; radiative heating and cooling,
sensible 96-110, 181-185
heat
transfer, latent energy transfer
16 soil
heat transfer. Energy balance examples. 100-108
again
17 Atmospheric
moisture and precipitation. RULE #7. Specific 177-190
humidity,
relative humidity, dew point temperature, sling
psychrometer and use of tables. OE#4.
18 Cloud
formation, adiabatic processes and lapse rates.
RULES #8, 9 190-202
Uplift mechanisms.
Air over the mountain problem.
19 Cloud forms; forms and
causes of precipitation. END
PT II 210-217
20 Winds
and global circulation, pressure gradient force, RULE #10. 141-152
High pressure cells,
21 EXAM 2 (Chapts 4, 5, 7 and portions of 3, 7 & 8)
22 low
pressure cells. Global pressure belts and surface winds. 152-170, 281-283
Upper
air patterns.
23 Ocean
currents, El Nino. Air masses. Warm and cold air masses 207-210,
214-221
and fronts,
24 occluded fronts. Cyclogenesis and wave cyclones. as above
25 Tropical
cyclones, local atmospheric disturbances. 221-240
26 Overview
of world climates, classification 277-285,
map 286-87
27 A
(tropical) climates 285-291,
166-167
28 C
(subtropical and marine west coast) 291-297
29 D
(continental) and E (polar) climates 297-302,
302-304
30 B
(air and semi-arid) climates. Summary.
304-309
FINAL EXAM: Wednesday, December 19, 8:00 -
10:00 a.m. (Chapts
6, 8, & 10)
NOTE:
This syllabus is subject to change without notice.