The MSU Climate Lab

GR 8990: Climate Diagnostics and Modeling

This graduate course introduces the physical foundations of Earth’s climate system and the diagnostic and modeling tools used to study climate variability and change. Students gain hands-on experience with climate models of different complexities and learn how to evaluate simulations and compare model output with observations. By the end of the course, students should be able to apply reproducible climate data analysis methods, identify physical drivers of climate variability across timescales, assess uncertainty in climate projections, and clearly communicate scientific results.

GR 4643-6643: Physical Climatology I

An investigation of the physical aspects of Earth’s climate, including interactions between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and land surface, and how they are affected by climate variability and change. Students successfully completing this course should be able to describe: (1); the main components of Earth’s radiation budget; (2) the main features of the hydrologic and carbon cycles; (3) the factors that determine regional and local climates; (4) internal modes of climate variability; (5) how the climate has changed over time and the techniques used for attributing the causes; and (6) externally-forced mechanisms for climate change, including human-induced, and uncertainties in climate projections.

GR 4613-6613: Applied Climatology

This course is designed to help students develop problem-solving strategies, technical skills, and disciplinary knowledge in applied climatology. Students completing this course should be able to (1) better appreciate the breadth of disciplines in which applied climatology plays a role; (2) identify available weather and climate data and describe how this information is collected and synthesized for use in applied work; and (3) formulate research questions concerning applied climatology, identify datasets and methods that can be used to address those questions and analyze and interpret the results.

GR 1703: Introduction to Climate and Climate Change

This course is designed to provide students with a thorough understanding of climate change and its wide-ranging implications. Students will learn to critically evaluate the evidence supporting human-driven climate change while recognizing the influence of natural climate variability. They will assess the potential social, economic, and environmental impacts of climate change and develop the skills to articulate the scientific uncertainties surrounding climate change projections. In addition, students will evaluate a range of strategies for mitigating these impacts, recognizing current national and international efforts, and critically assessing the likelihood of their success.

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