The objectives of this course are to:

1)	 Apply physical principles to the observed tropical atmosphere to understand phenomena and processes, from daily to decadal time scales and from local to planetary scales.

2)	 Develop an integrated understanding of tropical weather and climate as a coupled system involving interactions between the atmosphere, ocean, and land surfaces.

3)	 Apply observations as well as dynamical and statistical models to the challenging task of forecasting tropical cyclone activity on daily to seasonal time scales.   

Successful completion of this course will address the following student learning outcomes (SLOs) of the atmospheric sciences program, in the particular context of the weather and climate of the tropics:

SLO #1: Demonstrate mastery of the fundamental principles governing the atmosphere and the processes characteristic of the atmosphere across spatial and temporal scales.

SLO #2: Demonstrate integrated knowledge of the earth as a system, specifically the linkages between the atmosphere and the hydrosphere, the geosphere, and the biosphere.
 
SLO #3: Apply diagnostic and prognostic tools and technology to effectively and efficiently evaluate atmospheric processes across a multitude of scales to answer relevant scientific questions within and related to the atmospheric sciences.

SLO #4: Apply critical and analytical thinking as well as practical tools to solve problems in both individual and collaborative settings across the atmospheric sciences, to help students develop skills for lifelong learning.

SLO #5: Effectively communicate scientific information in oral and written form at an appropriate level for their audience.

SLO #6: Know and employ the principles of proper ethical conduct within meteorology and the atmospheric sciences regarding professional conduct and what the science can and cannot accurately and adequately predict [see (AMS Guidelines for Professional Conduct; Article XII of the AMS Constitution) http://www.ametsoc.org/aboutams/organizationpdfs/constitution.pdf].

Suggested texts: Galvin, Meteorology, and Climate of the Tropics (Wiley, 2016); and/or Laing and Evans, Introduction to Tropical Meteorology, 2nd Edition (COMET/UCAR, 2016; https://www.meted.ucar.edu/tropical/textbook_2nd_edition/index.htm) 

Week 1: How we define and observe the tropics; tropical convection and the Hadley Cell

Week 2: The ITCZ and monsoons

Week 3: Tropical Cyclones I: Morphology, climatology, and dynamical forecasts/tropical weather discussions

Week 4: Equatorial waves in the atmosphere and ocean/tropical weather discussions

Week 5: Oscillations: ENSO, MJO, QBO, etc./tropical weather discussions

Week 6: Tropical Cyclones II: Intraseasonal and seasonal forecasting; the role of Saharan dust/tropical weather discussions

Week 7: Tropical Cyclones III: Research and forecasting challenges: eyewall replacement cycles, extratropical transition, the “brown ocean effect”/tropical weather discussions
 
Week 8: Climate change and its impacts on the tropics