Courses taught by Professor Stephens

• Course Outline
• Course Projects

Course Objective - to provide an understanding and qualitative description of the physical processes that determine the distribution of radiant energy within the atmosphere and at the surface of the earth.

• Course Outline
• Course Projects

Course Objective - To introduce the student to the practice of measurement providing them with an understanding of basic measurement principals and instrumentation commonly used to observe the atmosphere.

• Course Outline
• Course Projects

Course Objective - to highlight the basic interactions between electromagnetic radiation and matter using examples drawn from remote sensing techniques that are commonly used in atmospheric sciences. The course is presented with the belief that an understanding of these interactions provides a solid foundation for understanding not only other topics of remote sensing not covered in the course, but also the processes that govern the distribution of radiation in the Earth's atmosphere.

• Course Outline
• Numerical Exercises

Course Objective - to acquaint students with advanced concepts of radiative transfer to the extent that (I) they can solve typical problems of atmospheric radiative transfer and (II) they can use these concepts in retrieval of atmosphere parameters from measurements of radiation (topics covered in the course are indicated by asterisks).

• Course Outline
• Course Projects

Course Objective - This class focuses on the role of radiative processes in the Earth's climate systems and is concerned with topics of Earth radiation and energy balance, radiative and radiative convective equilibrium, climate thermodynamics, and climate feedbacks.

Course Structure - Selected overview lectures, guest lectures on key topics, paper reviews and course project.

• Course Outline
• Course Projects

Course Objective - This course focuses on the use of the newly developed 3cm FM-CW radar to observe and measure certain properties of the atmosphere. To appreciate the analysis and interpretation of the radar data, analysis of the components of the radar will be given at a level sufficient to illustrate how they affect our understanding of the information contained in the radar echoes. Numerical simulations of the radar's function will be provided in the classroom to enhance visualization of radar operation. Finally you will evaluate the radar by measuring some of its key parameters and by observing, recording, and analyzing echoes from both fixed and moving objects. Hopefully, nature will comply by allowing us to observe interesting meteorological targets such as falling snow and perhaps rain or virga.