The Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science offers graduate study leading to the Master of Professional Studies, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. Coursework in atmospheric and oceanic sciences is also offered at the upper division and graduate level as a service to other campus graduate programs. The educational program is broadly based and involves many applications of the mathematical, physical and applied sciences that characterize modern atmospheric sciences and physical oceanography, including climate and earth system science, and multidisciplinary studies of the interrelationship among the atmosphere, the oceans, the land, and the biota. The Department's advanced degree programs are designed to prepare students for participation in contemporary research in the atmospheric and oceanic science. Research specializations include: atmospheric dynamics, atmospheric chemistry, physical oceanography, air pollution, atmospheric radiative transfer, remote sensing of the atmosphere, ocean, and land, climate variability and change, data assimilation, numerical weather prediction, severe storms, surface-atmosphere, ocean-atmosphere and biosphere-atmosphere interactions, and earth system modeling. The curriculum includes a set of Core courses to provide a fundamental background in atmospheric and oceanic dynamics, physical meteorology and atmospheric chemistry, earth system science and climate, as well as advanced specialized courses. Supervised research using state-of-the-art facilities then prepares the students for future contributions in their chosen field.
The growth of satellite remote sensing since the 1960s revolutionized earth system studies, providing previously unimaginable global-scale observations. This stunning increase in observations has led to many advances including accurate numerical weather prediction, tracking of the polar ozone holes, and quantification of the rise of global sea level and the melting of the Greenland ice sheet. The earliest satellites in the 1960s and early 1970s only measured upwelling earth radiation in coarsely resolved spectral bands. Successive generations with improved stability, sensitivity, and spectral resolution have produced increasingly detailed information about the physical and chemical properties of the atmosphere. Active RADAR and LIDAR satellites have added additional capabilities to track a variety of hydrologic processes as well as the land and ocean surface. The revolution in remote sensing continues with innovations such as the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) computer tomography of the atmosphere, and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment missions tracking time-dependent shifts in mass.
