DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCES
METEOROLOGY 356
(Section 1)
Schedule Number 14267
Website:
http;//tornado.sfsu.edu/geosciences/classes/m356/m356_F04.html
Credit: 3 Semester Units Room/Time:
TH604; MWF 1200-1300
Prerequisites: None.
Instructor: John P. Monteverdi, Professor of
Meteorology; TH613
Phone/Email/FAX: Ext. 87728;
montever@sfsu.edu or montever@earthlink.net; 87705
Office Hours: MWF 9-10 AM
plus many hours available by arrangement.
See my door card.
Meteorology 356 fulfills the
Perspectives from the Sciences
requirement of the California Cultures and Environments cluster in Segment III of the General Education
program. This course will also be
designated a Core Course in the new California Studies degree program
administered by the Department of History.
Students should note that in
order for this course to count towards fulfilling your General Education
Segment III requirement you must:
(i) fulfill the other requirements of the cluster (found on page 165 of
the Schedule of Classes); and,
(ii) be at least a Junior while taking any course in the cluster.
Scope of the Course
The general function of any
course in the General Education program is to provide students with the
information which is a fundamental underpinning for any well-educated
individual. Students may
rightfully argue that they have enough troubles filling out their majors
program without the added burden of taking on coursework which seems at best
peripheral and at worst totally non-relevant to their educational goals. I believe that this attitude is
expedient and the end result of its implementation is that the student, upon
graduation, is not the least bit "well-rounded". Such a student has limited ability to
make informed judgments about the issues which confront him or her beyond those
which fall into their narrow field of interest.
In the case of the present
course, the instructor has designed the content to help students become aware
of some of the important aspects of their immediate environment. In the context of California studies,
it is fundamental that students graduating from a major univerisity in
California have some understanding of the physical processes which control the
local natural environment. The
controls on these physical processes can be understood at a conceptual level by
the educated layperson.
The science portion of the
General Education program is also designed to expose the student to the ways in
which scientists do research. The
definition of and testing of a hypothesis is fundamental to the advancement of
any discipline and is termed the "scientific method". It is the instructor's experience that
students generally have a poor conception of what is involved in application of
the scientific method in the study of a problem. The present course is designed to help initiate the student
to the scientific method by presenting them with the results of a number of
varied research efforts into the understanding of California weather
patterns. Hopefully, the students
will then be able to distinguish between the conclusions of valid scientific
research efforts and those of "fringe scientists" even though both
may be given equal weight in the media.
Segment III of General
Education has an additional goal beyond those listed above. Courses in this segment should show
that advancement in a particular field has occurred because of interdisciplinary
cooperation; hence the Segment III title Relationships of
Knowledge. In the case of California weather pheonmena, oceanographers
and geologists can contribute much to our understanding of the local controls
on meteorological events. For example,
sea-surface temperature patterns have dramatic effects on a number of phenomena
spanning many scales, from California's summer fog pattterns to the path,
number and strength of winter storms.
Flooding and mudslides have as much to do the local geology and
geomorphology as they do to excessive rainfall. While a detailed overview of such interrelationships is
covered in other courses (Metr 302--The Violent Atmosphere and Ocean), the
instructor will stress these interelationships when they govern the basic
California weather types discussed in this course.
Finally, since no student
has fulfilled the goals of a university education unless he or she can
communicate the learned information to others, one of the requirements of
Segment III is that students learn to pass on important information in an
effective manner, both verbally and in written form. Since this class is relatively small, this will be
accomplished by both written assignments and in brief oral reports.
The written assignments will
each be in the 4-5 page range, and will be completed in the formal style
required of submissions to peer-reviewed science journals. Students will also be required to
submit formatted notes for two of the class lectures to be published on the
class website. Together, these writing assignments/notes will total more than
10 pages of writing, as required by the Segment III guidelines.
Logistics of the Course
The instructor's main research interest is severe and
unusual weather in California. As such I have studied the
meteorological controls on diverse weather events in
California, from freezes to tornadoes, from drought to
flood etc. I believe that the basic controlling
factors on the "normal" and "abnormal" weather events which
comprise Califomia climate can be understood at a
conceptual level. It is an important purpose of this course
that the students attain the ability to recognize
fifteen or so of the most frequent Califomia weather pattems.
Such
pattem recognition will be an invaluable aid not only to those involved in
teaching physical science
as a career, but also to those individuals who have a
deep interest in their natural environment.
Beyond discussion of the basic weather types, there are a number of global meteorological events which are
having important local consequences. Students in this course will be introduced to the role that
teleconnections (a cause-effect or effect-effect relationship between events in distant locations) have
in determining California weather pattems. The impact of the El Nino phenomenon on Califomia climate is
an important example of this. Also, we will be discussing increasing global carbon dioxide levels and
Califomia temperature trends as possible corroboration of the so-called "runaway Greenhouse Effect".
The instructor's approach will be to examine the
research which has led to the identification of the weather
pattems
discussed above and, in so doing, to expose the students to the fundamentals of
the scientific
method. No knowledge of meteorology is presupposed by
the instructor; a brief introduction to the
science
and synopsis of the basic controls of weather phenomena will be provided within
the structure
of the
course. One of the important benefits of a course of this sort is that not only
will students become
more familiar with the controls of California
climate, but also will be exposed to the basic reasons for
the development of hurricanes, thunderstorms, fog
etc.
Course Plan
TWO TAKEHOME WRITING
ASSIGNMENTS worth 5% each for a total of 10%.
HOMEWORKS worth a total of
10%.
CLASS PARTICIPATION worth
10%.
TWO MIDTERMS worth 20% each
for a total of 40%.
ONE FINAL (Comprehensive)
worth 30% of the grade.
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Please Note:
Ordinarily, there will be no MAKE-UP quizzes or exams, and late
assignments will not be accepted. If there is a
compelling reason you must miss
an
exam or assignment, you MUST contact me beforehand to arrange for a
make-up date or extension.
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Textbooks
Required:
Gilliam, Harold, 2002: The Weather of the San Francisco Bay Region. UC Press. ISBN 0-520-22990-8, 106 pp.
Monteverdi, J.P., 2004: Metr 356 Reader. Duplicated Materials,
Williams, J., 1992:
The Weather Book.
USA Today. ISBN 0-679-73669-7, 212 pp.
Important Schedule Notification: I will be attending the 22nd Conference on Severe Local Storms on the East Coast for the week of 3 October. I will notify the class about what will be happening that week in my absence. I am trying to line up guest lecturers. Material covered in such lectures will be fair game for the midterms.
Homework 1: Dist: Wednesday 15
September
Due: Monday 20 September
Last Day to
Drop Wednesday 22
September
Midterm #1 Friday 1
October
Writing
Assignment #1: Dist: Wednesday 29
September
Due: Friday
15 October
Homework 2: Dist: Monday 18
October
Due: Monday 25
October
Writing
Assignment #2: Dist: Friday 29
October
Due: Friday
12 November
Midterm #2 Wednesday 24
November
Thanksgiving
Recess Thursday-Sunday 25-28
Nov
Final Exam Wednesday
15 Dec 10:45 AM-1:15PM
Tentative Course Outline
Meteorology 356
1.
Introduction
2.
Description of
California's Climate and the Mediterranean Climate Around the World: ŇNormalsÓ
3.
Basics of Meteorology
and Map Interpretation
4. Variability
of California's Climate
a.
Definitions
b.
Non-meteorological evidence
c.
Trends in California's temperature and precipitation record
5. Drought
and Flood as Norrnal Features of the California Climate
6. Global
Teleconnections and California Climate Variabilit
7. El Ni–o and
La Ni–a and California Climate
8. Controls
on California Climate
a.
Global-scale controls--the General Circulation
b.
Continental-scale controls--monsoonal circulations
c.
Local controls--topography etc.
9. Summer
and Fall California Weather Types
a.
Summer Phenomena
(i)
Large-scale
meteorological setting
(ii)
Advection
Fog
(iii)
Inversions and
Air Pollution
(iv)
Arizona Monsoon
and warm season Rainfall in California
(v)
Hurricanes
and warm season rainfall in California
b.
Fall Phenomena
(i)
Large-scale
meteorological setting
(ii)
Santa Ana,
Diablo, Mono and Sundowner Winds
(iii)
Fire
10. Dynamic
Controls on Climate in the Middle Latitudes
a.
Jet Streams
b.
Extratropical disturbances
11. Winter
and Spring California Weather Types
a.
Winter Phenomena
(i) Large-scale
meteorological setting
(ii)
Freezes and
frosts
(iii)
Middle-latitude
(normal) Wave Cyclone Type
(iv)
"Unusual"
Storm Types
b. Spring Phenomena
(i)
Large-scale
meteorological setting
(ii)
Tonopah
lows
(iii)
Severe
thunderstorms and tomadoes