ENV- 450 / ATM 550: PALEOCLIMATOLOGY
TUESDAY
& THURSDAY 2:45 PM – 4:05 PM, ES 328
This class is designed to introduce the students to the diverse field of paleoclimatology and climate reconstruction. The class will specifically focus on the use of natural archives (ice cores, tree rings, corals, cave deposits, etc.,) to reconstruct environmental, climatic, and atmospheric change over a range of time scales. The primary timescales of interest will be the Holocene, and the past 1000 years, but we will also examine some longer reconstructions spanning the late Pleistocene. In the process we will cover a range of topics in lecture that will provide an introduction to natural climatic forcings and variability, age dating techniques, statistical analysis, climatic proxies (natural archives), and paleoclimatic reconstruction techniques.
Topics
(not necessarily covered in this order):
- Introduction to paleoclimatology
- Sources of paleoclimatic/ paleoenvironmental information
- Statistical methods of climate analysis
- Dating Methods: (annually resolved records, 14C,
U-series, oxygen isotopes, biological methods, etc.)
- Age model construction, time-series development
- Introduction to paleoclimatic proxies (stable isotopes, trace
metals, micropaleontology etc.)
- Ice cores
- Corals
- Dendroclimatology (tree rings)
- Speleothems (cave deposits)
- Lacustrine deposits
- Marine Sediments and foraminifera
- Pollen and other biologic proxies
- Glacial records, moraine dating
- Historical records (Documentary data)
INSTRUCTOR: Mathias Vuille
ES 311
ph.: 442-4472
mvuille@albany.edu
TIME AND LOCATION: Tue.
& Th. 2:45 pm - 4:05
pm, ES 328
CREDITS: 3
READING AND STUDY MATERIALS:
There is no textbook required, but we will
rely quite heavily on material from several books:
- Paleoclimatology; Reconstructing Climates of the
Quaternary, R. S. Bradley, 3rd edition, 2014 Academic Press
- Paleoclimates - Understanding
Climate Change past and present, Thomas M. Cronin, 2009, Columbia
University Press
- Earth’s Climate – past and future, W.F. Ruddiman, W.H. Freeman
and Company, 2001
We will read and discuss scientific articles (to be handed out or distributed via website by the instructor)
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS: Monday afternoon, 1-3 pm
WEBSITE: For all course material,
including class lectures and papers go here
(password
required)
FORMAT: The class
is a mixture of lectures, seminar-style discussions and
student presentations.
EVALUATION:
20%
Exam 1
20% Exam
2
25%
Exam 3
15% Class participation / Homework
20% Oral
presentation
15%
Exam 1
15% Exam
2
20% Exam 3
25%
Review Paper
10% Class participation / Homework
15%
Oral presentation
Class participation:
We will read papers on
an almost weekly basis. Students will be asked to summarize the
main findings and methods of the paper and lead the discussion of
aspects that were especially interesting and noteworthy or unclear
and difficult to understand.
Oral Presentations:
Each student is required to work on a selected topic of his/her choice and present a short (~12 -15 min.) talk to the rest of the class in the last few weeks of the semester.
Review paper:
For graduate students enrolled in ATM 550 this class includes a writing assignment. The goal is to choose a scientific topic or issue relevant to this class and present a detailed review of the current knowledge on the subject. This can include an outline of how a field or a hypothesis has evolved over time. You will need to gather original scientific papers on the topic and critique them. The final paper should be approximately 10-15 pages of text followed by a detailed reference list. I am available to help select an appropriate topic and I will be available to discuss the papers you have found on your chosen subject. There is no need to hand in an outline, but you can submit a draft outline of the paper to receive comments.
The final paper is due Friday, December 13, 2019.