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| GEOG0218-1 | Climatology and elementary meteorology
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| Duration : | 30h Th, 30h Pr, 2d FW |
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| Lecturer : | Michel Erpicum |
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Language(s) of instruction :
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| French language |
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Organisation and examination :
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| All year long, with partial in January |
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Course contents :
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| The following subjects are covered : description of the Earth's atmosphere, study of its variables of state and their vertical profiles within troposphere, relations between apparent way of the Sun in the sky and consequences on the sunniness of a lot of sites, radiation phenomena, greenhouse effect, changes of phase of water, clouds and hydrometeors, evapotranspiration and interceptions, general atmospheric circulation (components of the wind, storms and tropical cyclones, monsoons, trade winds, prevailing winds, regional winds, foehn effect...), synoptic meteorological conditions and their effects on lived weather, anomalies and climatic variabilities, comparison of some climatic classifications and analyzes of principal types of climates. The reading and the analysis of synoptic charts and weather reports are taught starting from concrete cases. |
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Learning outcomes of the course :
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| At the end of this course, the student will be able to :
- understand the behavior of the troposphere and its effects on "weather", seasons and climates everywhere at the Earth surface.
- read and interpret the atmospheric soundings and the meteorological synoptic maps
- understand the repercussions of greenhouse gases and human pressures on the environment and the nuisances associated with the climate and with the weather types. |
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Prerequisites and co-requisites/ Recommended optional programme components :
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| It is taken into consideration that the student has knowledge of the geographical terms used for the localization on the terrestrial sphere. The acquisition of a map of the world and/or a geographical atlas of the place names is highly recommended. A list of the vocabulary specific to the course is distributed at the beginning of the course and must be known and used as soon as possible. Basics of physic (mechanical and thermodynamic) are essential. |
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Planned learning activities and teaching methods :
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| Practical work are organized in three hour modules according to the advance of the theoretical course and in alternation with this one in the same time module. Personal reports are requested from the students all over the lectures. |
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Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning) :
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| The lectures are given by three hour modules at the Institute of Geography (Bat. B11). Lectures are given with a systematic support of an overhead projector and a multi-media projector. A 5 to 10 min interruption is envisaged in the middle of each lesson. Practical works are organized according to the progress of the course. A scientific calculator is necessary for certain practical works.
The attendance to the practical sessions are obligatory. |
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Recommended or required readings :
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| The sheets of the course are distributed chapter after chapter at the beginning of each course. It is the same for the notes for practical work.
The consultation of the following books , available in library is suggested to supplement the information of the course :
- Climates (A. Godard and Mr. Tabeaud, Hake, 1993) in french
- General Meteorology (J.P. Triplet and G Roche, 1980) in french
- Atmosphere, Weather and Climate (R.G. Barry and R.J. Chorley, 1992)
- Introduction to climatology (A. Hufty, DeBoeck, 2001) in french |
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Assessment methods and criteria :
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| Practical work are assumed to be returned for the following week. The evaluation of practical work of the year will be established by taking into account the appreciation of the work completed by the student during meetings on the one hand and the quality of the returned exercises on the other hand. An evaluation is planned for the theoretical course and the PW at the January exams.
Practical works counts for 40 % of the total evaluation. |
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Work placement(s) :
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Organizational remarks :
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Contacts :
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| Prof. ERPICUM, Department of Geography Institute of Geography (B11)
Phone: 04.366.52.21
E-mail: michel.erpicum@ulg.ac.be
Practical Work: A.BELLEFLAMME |
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