METEO 452 – Tropical Meteorology

Instructor: Prof. Anthony Didlake, Classes: Tue/Thu 1:35 – 2:50 pm, 221 Hammond

METEO 452 – Tropical Meteorology 

Instructor: Prof. Anthony Didlake 
Office: 505 Walker
Email: [email protected]
Office hours: Mon 4-5pm, Wed 4:30-5:30pm, or by appointment 

Classes: Tue/Thu 1:35 – 2:50 pm, 221 Hammond 

Prerequisites: METEO 411, METEO 421

Policy – Students who do not meet the prerequisites may be disenrolled according to Administrative Policy C-5 if they do not have the proper prerequisite override[1]. If you have not completed the listed prerequisites, then consult with the instructor. Students who add the course after being disenrolled according to this policy are in violation of Item 15 on the Student Code of Conduct[2]. 

Course Summary: This course builds on the foundations laid in Synoptic and Dynamic Meteorology courses by exploring atmospheric processes in the tropics. We will examine distributions of mass, momentum, energy, and water vapor in various tropical weather phenomena and the overall tropical climate. We will spend a significant amount of time covering tropical cyclones, with focus on their development, maintenance, climatology, and forecasting.

Course Objectives

  • Develop a theoretical understanding of the dynamics and thermodynamics of the tropical atmosphere
  • Understand and be able to explain the principles underlying the structure, development, and evolution of various tropical phenomena
  • Demonstrate proficiency in the methods for analyzing and forecasting tropical phenomena

Course Outcomes

  • Demonstrate knowledge of the climatology in the tropics and the physical processes underlying the tropical general circulation
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the major sources of spatial, seasonal, and interannual tropical variability including tropical waves, ENSO, and MJO.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the development, structure, and evolution of tropical cyclones
  • Demonstrate the ability to analyze diverse data and models to forecast tropical cyclone track and intensity 

Resources

  • Class textbook: Introduction to Tropical Meteorology by Laing and Evans. This textbook is available free online at http://www.meted.ucar.edu/tropical/textbook_2nd_edition/. To use this resource, you will have to register with the UCAR/COMET program. Use of all UCAR/COMET modules is free; registration is for tracking purposes only.
  • Optional resource: An Introduction to Dynamic Meteorology by Holton and Hakim.
  • Additional reading material will be posted on the Canvas class website throughout the semester. 

Assessment: The weighting of the components of your course grade is as follows:

  • Homework and quizzes 35%
  • Midterm Exam 25%
  • Final Exam 30%
  • Weather discussions 10%                       

There will be several homework assignments and quizzes during the semester, each with an equal grade weighting. The lowest homework/quiz grade will be dropped from your final grade. While you are encouraged to discuss the homework problems with your classmates, the work you submit must be in your own words. Late homework (up to 24 hours late) will be accepted with a 25% penalty.

The midterm exam is tentatively scheduled for Oct 11th. The final exam will be scheduled by the University during finals week. Make-up exams will be conducted for students who make arrangements with me prior to the scheduled exam time. An opportunity for extra credit for each exam may be given near the exam dates.

Each student will give at least one tropical weather discussion during the semester. Details for the weather discussions will be provided in class.

The final grade will be based on a standard grading scale: 90% and above = A, 80-89 = B, etc. The instructor reserves the right to curve the grades to make this grading scale easier.

Academic integrity: Academic honesty is required and expected in this class. This course adopts the EMS Academic Integrity Policy[3]. Students in this class are expected to write up their homework assignments individually, to work on the exams own, and to write their papers in their own words using proper citations. Class members may work on the homework assignment in groups, but then each student must write up the answers separately. Students are not to copy quiz or exam answers from another person's paper and present them as their own; students may not plagiarize text from papers written by others. Students who present other people's work as their own will receive at least a 0 on the assignment and may well receive an F in the course. If in doubt about how the academic integrity policy applies to a specific situation, students are encouraged to consult with the instructor. To learn more, see Penn State’s “Plagiarism Tutorial for Students.”[4] 

Accommodations for students with disabilities: Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities. The Office for Disability Services (ODS) website provides contact information for every Penn State campus: (http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources/disability-coordinator). For further information, please visit the Office for Disability Services website (http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources).

In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation based on the documentation guidelines (http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources/guidelines). If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus’s disability services office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations. 

Attendance: This course abides by the Penn State Attendance Policy E-11[5] and Conflict Exam Policy 44-35[6]. Please also see Illness Verification Policy[7] and Religious Observance Policy[8]. Students who miss class for legitimate reasons will be given a reasonable opportunity to make up missed work, including exams and quizzes. Students are not required to secure the signature of medical personnel in the case of illness or injury and should use their best judgment on whether they are well enough to attend class or not; the University Health Center will not provide medical verification for minor illnesses or injuries. Other legitimate reasons for missing class include religious observance, military service, family emergencies, regularly scheduled university-approved curricular or extracurricular activities, and post-graduate, career-related interviews when there is no opportunity for students to re-schedule these opportunities (such as employment and graduate school final interviews).  Students who encounter serious family, health, or personal situations that result in extended absences should contact the Office of Student and Family Services for help: http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/familyservices/.  Whenever possible, students participating in University-approved activities should submit to the instructor a Class Absence Form available from the Registrar's Office: (http://www.registrar.psu.edu/student_forms) at least one week prior to the activity. 

Cancellations and delays: Campus emergencies, including weather delays, are announced on Penn State Live (http://live.psu.edu/) and communicated to cellphones, email, the Penn State Facebook page, and Twitter via PSUTXT (to sign up, please see http://live.psu.edu/psutxt).

Course Copyright: All course materials students receive or to which students have online access are protected by copyright laws. Students may use course materials and make copies for their own use as needed, but unauthorized distribution and/or uploading of materials without the instructor’s express permission is strictly prohibited. University Policy AD 40, the University Policy Recording of Classroom Activities and Note Taking Services addresses this issue. Students who engage in the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials may be held in violation of the University’s Code of Conduct, and/or liable under Federal and State laws.

Course outline (see Lecture and Assignment Schedule on Canvas)  

  • Basic state of the tropics

    • Observational overview
    • Energy and moisture budgets
    • Tropical convection
    • General circulation of the tropics

  • Tropical cyclones

    • Development and climatology
    • TC structure
    • Dynamics and thermodynamics of TC evolution
    • TCs and climate change
    • Observing and forecasting TCs
    • TC inner core features

  • Tropical variability

    • El Niño/Southern Oscillation
    • Monsoon systems
    • Equatorial waves
    • Madden-Julien Oscillation

Disclaimer statement: Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus can be changed at any time, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. Changes will be posted to the course discussion forum.