Science of Climate Change
Code
73224100
Academic unit
Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas
Department
Geografia e Planeamento Regional
Credits
5
Weekly hours
2
Teaching language
Portuguese
Objectives
The students should acquire the following skills:
1) Understanding of the fundamental notions of meteorology and climatology;
2) Knowledge and ability to about reason the climate system, the energy balance of the atmosphere, the dynamics of the atmosphere and oceans;
3) Knowledge and ability to reason about radiative forcing, the greenhouse effect and the carbon cycle;
4) Knowledge and ability to reason about the history of Earth´s climate and paleoclimatology;
5) Knowledge and ability to reason about present observations of climate change in the atmosphere, cryosphere and ocean;
6) Knowledge of: Modelling the climate system, general circulation models, dynamic and statistical downscaling.
7) Knowledge about future projections of climate at global and regional scales.
Prerequisites
None
Subject matter
1 - Basic notions of meteorology and climatology. Characteristics and composition of the atmosphere. General circulation of the atmosphere.
2 - Understanding the climate system and the causes of climate variability.
3 - Energy balance of the atmosphere and dynamics of the atmosphere and oceans.
4 - Radiative Forcing, greenhouse effect and the carbon cycle.
5 - History of the Earth´s climate and analysis of the major causes of variability. Methodologies reconstruction of past climates. Paleoclimatology.
6 - Recent observations of climate change in the atmosphere, ocean and cryosphere.
7 - Modelling the climate system. General circulation models of the atmosphere. Dynamic and statistical downscaling.
8 - Future climate scenarios. Climate projections at the global and regional scale. Uncertainties involved in climate scenarios.
Bibliography
-Climate Change in Portugal. Scenarios, Impacts and Adaptation Measures SIAM Project, F.D. Santos, R. Moita and K. Forbes-2002-SIAM Project, Gradiva, Lisboa, 2002
- Alterações Climáticas em Portugal. Cenários, Impactos e Medidas de Adaptação Projecto SIAM II, F.D. Santos and P. Miranda-2006- Gradiva, Lisboa.
- IPCC 4th Assessment Report
-IPCC 5th Assessment Report
-Alterações Globais, desafios e riscos presentes e futuros, book published by Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos, Lisbon, 2012.
- The Physics of Climate, J.P.Peixoto and A.Oort, Springers, 1991
Teaching method
The teaching consists of lectures to teach the contents of the syllabus and also to solve problems and exercises in order to develop their capacity to apply their theoretical knowledge on the science of climate change obtained in the lectures.
Evaluation method
The examination consists in writing an essay in the form of a research paper on a topic selected by each student from a set proposed by the professor.
Furthermore each student has to make an oral presentation of his essay during 15 minutes followed by 5 minutes of discussion.