Course introductions

• Course
  Instructor
  Credit
  Introduction
• Courses offered by instructors from other departments
  -
  -
  General Physics & Lab, Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Physical Chemistry and so on.
  | For more information please visit "Office of Academic Affairs, NTU" or "NTU Online Course Information".
• Advanced Atmospheric Dynamics
  HUNG-CHI KUO
  3
  This course would include Atmospheric Oceanic Fluid Dynamics (AOFD) and new topics such as nonlinear dynamic modeling, multi-balance and stability, feedback, latency, synchronization, and scale analysis etc. This course puts an emphasis on math thinking and model computation.
  | The course contains
  1. Fundamentals and the ultimate problems
  2. Governing equations
  3. Quasi-equilibrium dynamics
  4. Vertical transform
  5. Geostrophic adjustment
  6. 2D turbulence
  7. Normal modes
  8. Tropical cyclone dynamics
  9. Large scale ocean circulation
  10. Boundary later dynamics
• Mesoscale Meteorology
  CHENG-KU YU
  2
  As revealed by advances in observing technology such as Doppler radar remote sensing and in numerical modeling, it has been recognized that most of hazardous weather occurring in the real atmosphere are typically organized on an intermediate (viz. meso) scale. Particularly, because of the inherent complex of mesoscale phenomena, theoretical principal of the synoptic meteorology usually cannot be applied to explain dynamical processes associated with these severe weather events. The main objective of this course is to introduce various mesoscale phenomena occurring in the atmosphere, with special emphasis on their internal structure and associated dynamics. In this course, current understanding of mesoscale processes will be the major theme, but it will be also complemented by including some new findings from the latest results of mesoscale research.
  | The course outline will primarily include
  1. Fundamental Concepts of Mesoscale
  2. Fundamental Principle of Radar Observations
  3. Concept of Atmospheric Convection and Perturbation Pressure Diagnosis
  4. Midlatitude and Tropical Mesoscale Convective Systems
  5. Severe Storms
  6. Orographic Precipitation
• Dynamic Climatology
  SUI CHUNG-HSING
  3
  This course teaches fundamental dynamics for low–frequency climate oscillations.
  | The content contains three themes：
  Ⅰ. Basic dynamics
  Ⅱ. Tropical Intraseasonal oscillations (TISO)
  Ⅲ. Annual cycle, interannual and decadal oscillations
  | The first theme consists of the following six subjects
  1. Shallow water model and equatorial waves
  2. Vertical mode separation in a stratified atmosphere
  3. Gill model
  4. Lindzen–Nigam model
  5. Two and half layer tropical atmospheric model
  6. Ocean model
• Global Atmospheric Circulation
  YEN-TING HWANG
  3
  This course introduces the characteristics and the associated mechanisms of the large-scale circulation in the atmosphere. With the goal of bridging theories and observation using conceptual and numerical models with different level of complexity, we focus on the zonal mean circulation and briefly extend to the 3D circulation. Topics include: Hadley Circulation (its strength and extent), midlatitude zonal mean circulation (the drivers of westerlies), and 3D atmospheric circulation (monsoon, storm tracks). The model-projected trend (during global warming) of these circulations will be covered by paper discussions, which are designed to review and discuss the fundamental theories and simplified models.
• Global Climate Change
  WEI-TING CHEN
  2
  This course provides a solid foundation in climate change science, including the physical basis of the climate systems, the development and application of climate models, the interpretation of future climate projection, and the potential impacts of climate change on the environment and human society.
  The students will carry out hands-on projects to review the IPCC reports (and related literature), to analyze climate data, and to discuss the cutting-edge topics in global and regional climate change.
• Land-Atmosphere Interactions
  MIN-HUI LO
  3
  Feedbacks between land and atmosphere play a central role in the interactive functioning of the Earth's climate. The goal of this course is to understand the essential aspects of roles of land processes in the climate systems.
  | Topics covered include
  1. basics of terrestrial surface energy, water and carbon balances
  2. ecohydrology
  3. land use and land cover changes.
  Students will read several critical papers in these topics, and will also learn to design, perform, and analyze numerical climate experiments/outputs with a land surface model and climate model for their final project.
• Cloud Dynamics
  Chien-Ming Wu
  3
  This course focuses on the general dynamics of cloud systems. Models of fog, stratocumulus, shallow cumulus, deep cumulus, and orographic convection will be presented. Classes will include presentations by the instructor and students. Material covered in class will be supplemented by homework assignments, which require coding abilities. The class will conclude with student presentations on a chosen project.
  Class discussions will be held at the end of each topic or main subsection to discuss science questions arising from the material just presented. Each student is expected to have thought about such questions independently and be able to present these in class if called on.
  | The course contains
  1. Introduction on cloud dynamics –
  Government equations in simulating convective clouds in the atmosphere, Turbulence closure and Large Eddy Simulation on clouds
  2. Fogs and Stratocumulus Clouds –
  Formation and dissipation mechanisms, Mixed layer model
  3. Shallow cumulus –
  Boundary layer cumulus, Theories of entrainment, Detrainment in cumulus clouds, Mass flux cloud model
  4. Deep cumulus –
  Cloud/environment profiles, Parcel model and cumulus parameterization
  5. Orographic Systems –
  Theory of flow over hills and mountains, Orographic precipitation over complex topography
• Clouds and Environment
  WEI-TING CHEN
  3
  This course aims to discuss "tropical convection aggregation and radiative convective equilibrium (RCE) process". By analyzing observative and climate model datasets, we will get a deeper insight into organized convections, environments with convection developments, and large-scale energy transport and discuss the involved physical processes.
• Geophysical Fluid Dynamics
  SHIH-NAN CHEN
  3
  This is an upper-level undergraduate and graduate-level course on geophysical waves and instability. We will focus on slowly evolving flow that is nearly in geostrophic balance and thus satisfies the "Quasi-geostrophic (QG) approximation".
  | The primary subjects are
  1. Quasi-geostrophy
  2. Rossby wave
  3. Baroclinic instability
  4. Introductory wave-mean-flow interaction + Geostrophic turbulence
  The course format is a combination of lectures and student project, with student-led presentation/discussion.
• Applied Mathematics (Ⅱ)
  3
  In this course, we will introduce Fourier series, Fourier transform and their applications to solve wave equation, heat equation and Laplace's equation.
• Synoptic Meteorology (Ⅱ)
  CHENG-KU YU
  2
  | This course contains
  1. Extratropical cyclones –
  Definition and introduction, cyclogenesis, Petterssen Eq., cyclone precipitation and rainbands and their interactions with topography
  2. Applications of hydrodynamic theories on weather analysis –
  QG equations, application of QG tendency equation, application of QG omega equation, computation and measurements of vertical motions
  3. Tropical cyclones –
  Introduction, structure, development and motion of tropical cyclones, orographic precipitation in the TC environment
• Lab. of Synoptic Meteorology (Ⅱ)
  CHENG-KU YU
  1
  This course is offered together with the course of Synoptic Meteorology (Ⅱ). The class is divided into two parts. The first part (about one hour) is the weekly weather briefing presented by a group of 2~3 students. In the second part of the class, students are asked to practice various techniques, including Weather Integration and Nowcasting System (WINS), which is currently used in Central Weather Bureau (CWB) daily operation to analyze synoptic weather information.
• Numerical Analysis
  MIN-HUI LO
  2
  This course will introduce common numerical methods as well as their fundamental theories in atmospheric sciences and compare the pros and cons of each method. We would carry out the course by using Python programming language, and cover below 8 topics in this course:
  ● Solving the nonlinear equations
  ● Solving a system of linear equations
  ● Curve fitting
  ● Interpolation
  ● Finite Difference
  ● Ordinary Differential Equation (ODE)
  ● Numerical integration
  ● Advection and diffusion equation
• Biometeorology
  PO-HSIUNG LIN
  3
  This course reviews the interaction between atmosphere and biosphere. Three issues relative to plant, animal and human are grouped in the lectures. Not only conceptual diagram in the textbook, cases review from field experiences is the major component in each lecture to present the reality and execution of biometeorology. The topic of climate change impact and adaptation of biosphere is reviewed in the last lecture.
• Air Pollution Laboratory
  Hung, Hui-Ming
  2
  This course will provide students with hands-on experience in assembling Raspberry Pi single-board computers with developed sensors to monitor the air quality in our environment, in addition to learning the fundamental knowledge regarding the cause of air pollution. The new technologies for air quality monitoring will be introduced and compared. The students will perform a project for their final report with the assembled systems to understand the temporal and spatial distribution of air pollutants in our environment and to derive the possible sources.
• Atmospheric Dynamics (Ⅱ)
  HUNG-CHI KUO
  3
  | This course contains
  1. Waves in Atmosphere –
  wave basic, Fourier analysis, linearization, normal mode, acoustic waves, shallow water equations, reduced gravity, shallow water gravity waves, buoyancy waves, Kelvin wave, vortex Rossby waves, topographic Rossby waves, stationary topographic Rossby waves, stationary Rossby waves, dispersions, numerical dispersion, acoustic adjustment and geostrophic adjustment.
  2. Introduction to instabilities –
  inertial stability, convective stability, baroclinic instability, barotropic instability, conditional instability
  3. Introduction to general circulation –
  mass , angular momentum, energy, water vapor balance, three-cell circulation dynamics, residual circulation, non-acceleration theorem, Eulerian and Lagrangian circulation.
  4. Moist convection and tropical meteorology –
  tropical measurement, typhoon, dynamics of squall line.
  5. Introduction to NWP –
  turbulence revisited with energy cascade, stirring and mixing, predictability.
• Climatology
  YEN-TING HWANG
  3
  This course explores how and why Earth’s climate comes about. We will not only introduce what a typical weather condition is over each region on Earth, but also how and why climate, statistic of weather, varies geographically and even temporally throughout the earth’s history. To understand how climate system works, this course discuss concepts of radiative transfer, fluid dynamics, and thermodynamics, with an emphasis of providing an overview of a few physical balances that are important for shaping and maintaining the surface climate: energy balance and its role in controlling temperatures; the hydrologic cycle and its role in controlling humidity and aridity; angular momentum balance and its role in controlling winds.
• An Introductory Survey to Atmospheric Science Research
  Each faculty
  2
  This course introduces scientific studies as well as the relating methodology, results, and future prospects in atmospheric sciences. According to the main academical field in our department, which is weather dynamics, climate system, and atmospheric environment, the course contents would be divided into these three subsets.
  The lectures would be given by different professors with a variety of expertise and raise students' interests and awareness in different aspects of scientific research and applications through the interaction between instructors and students.
• Independent Study
  Each faculty
  2
  For those who have interests in specific topics in atmospheric sciences, the advisor would give them guidance to research conducting and scientific-report writing.
• Thesis (B.S.)
  Each faculty
  2
  For those who have interests in specific topics in atmospheric sciences, the advisor would give them guidance to formal thesis writings.
• Field Measurement of Atmospheric Environment (Ⅰ)
  PO-HSIUNG LIN
  2
  For practical education purposes, this course would take place in NTU MeiFeng Highland Experimental Farm for a week. The course content would include observational instrument operations and might have some alternations depending on the topic of each semester.
• Field Measurement of Atmospheric Environment (Ⅱ)
  PO-HSIUNG LIN
  2
  This is an extended course of "Atmospheric Measurement and Instrumentation". The course content includes observational instrument operations, meteorological data collecting, as well as the raw data processing. The location where the course take place might have some alternations each semester.
• Seminar on Weather Diagnosis
  MING-JEN YANG
  2
  This course aims for diagnosis, analysis, and interpretation of exact atmospheric phenomenon using related theories and accessible data from CWB as well as other resources. Ranging from circulation systems with different spatial and temporal scales (planetary scale, synoptic scale, mesoscale, and convective scale) to the structure and evolution of weather phenomenon will all be included. We will especially focus on the discussion and interpretation of regional weather phenomenon in this course.
• Atmospheric Remote Sensing
  I-I LIN
  2
  | This course contains
  1. Fundamentals of Atmospheric Radiation –
  atmospheric absorption, scattering, and emission, atmospheric window, spectrum, blackbody radiation
  2. Physical Principles of Remote Sensing –
  radiative transfer, active and passive remote sensing, sensing principles, satellite orbits
  3. Satellite and channel characteristics, applicability and limitation, introduction to sensors
  4. Retrieval of atmospheric and ocean parameters, applications of satellite remote sensing in atmosphere and ocean interactions, including sea surface temperature, ocean surface wind vectors, atmospheric profiles, aerosols, cloud, precipitation and other related parameters.
• Climate Diagnostics
  MONG-MING LU / SUI CHUNG-HSING
  2
  Short-term climate predictions on weekly, monthly, seasonal and annual timescales involve many processes that operate among the atmosphere, ocean and land surface. Monitoring and analyzing the weekly to interannual climate variability is an efficient way to enhance our understanding of global and regional climate variability and the relationship with high-impact weather events.
  This course is designed to be a graduate level (both MS and Ph.D.) course, with emphasis on learning about how to talk about natural variability from weekly to interannual time scales, and the fundamental statistical/quantitative methods used to diagnose the natural variability. The diagnostics aims to assess the nature of climate variations on differing time scales.
  The class will be a mixture of lectures, discussions, and student presentations. Half of the course is taught by interactive-oriented lectures covering the major topics that is relevant to the real-time climate monitoring and discussion. The rest of the course time will be devoted to observational and forecast data analysis and student presentations. There will be homework and midterm progress report to cover the lectures and a final oral presentation and written report on topic chosen by students.