This Major provides a solid basis for postgraduate study in meteorology, atmospheric physics, or related fields, and the necessary preparation for embarking on a professional career as a meteorologist directly after the BSc. The program is jointly administered by the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and the Department of Physics. Students should consult undergraduate advisers in both departments.
Required courses (64 credits)
ATOC 214
Intro:Physics of the Atmosph
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: An introduction to physical meteorology designed for students in the physical sciences. Topics include: composition of the atmosphere; heat transfer; the upper atmosphere; atmospheric optics; formation of clouds and precipitation; instability; adiabatic charts.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Fall
- 3 hours lecture
- Prerequisite: CEGEP Physics, or the combination of PHYS 131 and PHYS 142, or permission of instructor.
ATOC 215
Oceans, Weather and Climate
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Laws of motion, geostrophic wind, gradient wind. General circulation of the atmosphere and oceans, local circulation features. Air-sea interaction, including hurricanes and sea-ice formation, extra-tropical weather systems and fronts, role of the atmosphere and oceans in climate.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Winter
- 3 hours lecture
- Prerequisite: ATOC 214
ATOC 309
Weather Radars and Satellites
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Basic notions of radiative transfer and applications of satellite and radar data to mesoscale and synoptic-scale systems are discussed. Emphasis will be put on the contribution of remote sensing to atmospheric and oceanic sciences.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Winter
- 3 hours lecture
- Prerequisite: ATOC 215
- Terms
- Instructors
- Frederic Fabry, Gerard Szejwach
ATOC 315
Thermodynamics and Convection
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Buoyancy, stability, and vertical oscillations. Dry and moist adiabatic processes. Resulting dry and precipitating convective circulations from the small scale to the global scale. Mesoscale precipitation systems from the cell to convective complexes. Severe convection, downbursts, mesocyclones.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
ATOC 412
Atmospheric Dynamics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Equations of motion in rotating coordinates, elementary applications, circulation and vorticity, the planetary boundary layer, synoptic scale motions, Rossby waves and inertial oscillations.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
ATOC 540
Synoptic Meteorology 1
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Analysis of current meteorological data. Description of a geostrophic, hydrostatic atmosphere. Ageostrophic circulations and hydrostatic instabilities. Kinematic and thermodynamic methods of computing vertical motions. Tropical and extratropical condensation rates. Barotropic and equivalent barotropic atmospheres.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Fall
- 2 hours lecture; 2 hours laboratory
- Prerequisite (Undergraduate): MATH 314, MATH 315, or permission of instructor
ATOC 541
Synoptic Meteorology 2
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Analysis of current meteorological data. Quasi-geostrophic theory, including the omega equation, as it relates to extratropical cyclone and anticyclone development. Frontogenesis and frontal circulations in the lower and upper troposphere. Cumulus convection and its relationship to tropical and extratropical circulations. Diagnostic case study work.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Winter
- 2 hours lecture; 2 hours laboratory
- Prerequisite (Undergraduate): ATOC 412 and ATOC 540 or permission of instructor.
ATOC 546
Current Weather Discussion
1 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences: Half-hour briefing on atmospheric general circulation and current weather around the world using satellite data, radar observations, conventional weather maps, and analyses and forecasts produced by computer techniques.
Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences
- Winter
- 2 hours
- Prerequisite (Undergraduate): ATOC 540 or permission of instructor
- Restriction: Graduate students and final-year Honours Atmospheric Science students. Others by special permission.
MATH 222
Calculus 3
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci): Taylor series, Taylor's theorem in one and several variables. Review of vector geometry. Partial differentiation, directional derivative. Extreme of functions of 2 or 3 variables. Parametric curves and arc length. Polar and spherical coordinates. Multiple integrals.
Offered by: Mathematics and Statistics
- Terms
- Fall 2011
- Winter 2012
- Summer 2012
- Instructors
- James G Loveys, Mathew Donald Rogers, James G Loveys
- James G Loveys
MATH 223
Linear Algebra
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci): Review of matrix algebra, determinants and systems of linear equations. Vector spaces, linear operators and their matrix representations, orthogonality. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors, diagonalization of Hermitian matrices. Applications.
Offered by: Mathematics and Statistics
- Fall and Winter
- Prerequisite: MATH 133 or equivalent
- Restriction: Not open to students in Mathematics programs nor to students who have taken or are taking MATH 236, MATH 247 or MATH 251. It is open to students in Faculty Programs
- Terms
- Instructors
- Wilbur Jonsson
- Wilbur Jonsson
MATH 314
Advanced Calculus
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci): Derivative as a matrix. Chain rule. Implicit functions. Constrained maxima and minima. Jacobians. Multiple integration. Line and surface integrals. Theorems of Green, Stokes and Gauss.
Offered by: Mathematics and Statistics
- Terms
- Fall 2011
- Winter 2012
- Summer 2012
- Instructors
- Wilbur Jonsson
- Ivo Klemes
MATH 315
Ordinary Differential Eqns
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci): First order ordinary differential equations including elementary numerical methods. Linear differential equations. Laplace transforms. Series solutions.
Offered by: Mathematics and Statistics
- Terms
- Fall 2011
- Winter 2012
- Summer 2012
- Instructors
PHYS 230
Dynamics of Simple Systems
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Translational motion under Newton's laws; forces, momentum, work/energy theorem. Special relativity; Lorentz transforms, relativistic mechanics, mass/energy equivalence. Topics in rotational dynamics. Noninertial frames.
Offered by: Physics
- Fall
- 3 hours lectures
- Prerequisite: CEGEP Physics or PHYS 131.
- Corequisite: MATH 222
- Restriction: Not open to students taking or having passed PHYS 251
PHYS 232
Heat and Waves
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: The laws of thermodynamics and their consequences. Thermodynamics of P-V-T systems and simple heat engines. Free, driven, and damped harmonic oscillators. Coupled systems and normal modes. Fourier methods. Wave motion and dispersion. The wave equation.
Offered by: Physics
- Winter
- 3 hours lectures
- Prerequisites: CEGEP Physics or PHYS 142, and CEGEP chemistry or CHEM 120, and PHYS 230.
- Restriction: Not open to students taking or having passed PHYS 253
PHYS 257
Experimental Methods 1
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Introductory laboratory work and data analysis as related to mechanics, optics and thermodynamics. Introduction to computers as they are employed for laboratory work, for data analysis and for numerical computation. Previous experience with computers is an asset, but is not required.
Offered by: Physics
- Terms
- Instructors
- Bradley J Siwick, Edith M Engelberg
PHYS 258
Experimental Methods 2
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Advanced laboratory work and data analysis as related to mechanics, optics and thermodynamics. Computers will be employed routinely for data analysis and for numerical computation, and, particularly, to facilitate the use of Fourier methods.
Offered by: Physics
- Winter
- 6 hours of laboratory and classroom work
- Prerequisite: PHYS 257
- Terms
- Instructors
- Dominic Ryan, Dominic Ryan, Edith M Engelberg
PHYS 331
Topics in Classical Mechanics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Forced and damped oscillators, Newtonian mechanics in three dimensions, rotational motion, Lagrangian mechanics, small vibrations, normal modes. Introduction to Hamiltonian mechanics.
Offered by: Physics
PHYS 333
Thermal & Statistical Physics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Introductory equilibrium statistical mechanics. Quantum states, probabilities, ensemble averages. Entropy, temperature, Boltzmann factor, chemical potential. Photons and phonons. Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein distributions; applications.
Offered by: Physics
- Winter
- 3 hours lectures
- Prerequisite: PHYS 232
- Restriction: Not open to students taking or having passed PHYS 362
PHYS 339
Measurements Lab in Gen Phys
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Introduction to modern techniques of measurement. The use of computers in performing and analysing experiments. Data reduction, statistical methods, report writing. Extensive use of computers is made in this laboratory; therefore some familiarity with computers and computing is an advantage.
Offered by: Physics
- Winter
- 6 hours
- Prerequisite: PHYS 241 or permission of instructor
PHYS 340
Majors Electricity & Magnetism
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: The electrostatic field and scalar potential. Dielectric properties of matter. Energy in the electrostatic field. Methods for solving problems in electrostatics. The magnetic field. Induction and inductance. Energy in the magnetic field. Magnetic properties of matter. Maxwell's equations. The dipole approximation.
Offered by: Physics
PHYS 342
Majors Electromagnetic Waves
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Maxwell's equations. The wave equation. The electromagnetic wave, reflection, refraction, polarization. Guided waves. Transmission lines and wave guides. Vector potential. Radiation. The elemental dipole; the half-wave dipole; vertical dipole; folded dipoles; Yagi antennas. Accelerating charged particles.
Offered by: Physics
PHYS 446
Majors Quantum Physics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: de Broglie waves, Bohr atom. Schroedinger equation, wave functions, observables. One dimensional potentials. Schroedinger equation in three dimensions. Angular momentum, hydrogen atom. Spin, experimental consequences.
Offered by: Physics
Complementary Courses (3 credits)
PHYS 434
Optics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Geometrical optics, wave optics, lasers, Fourier transform spectroscopy, holography, optical data processing, stellar interferometry.
Offered by: Physics
- Winter
- 3 hours lectures
- Prerequisite: PHYS 342 or PHYS 352, or permission of the instructor
or
PHYS 439
Majors Lab in Modern Physics
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Physics: Advanced level experiments in modern physics stressing quantum effects and some properties of condensed matter.
Offered by: Physics
- Fall
- 6 hours
- Prerequisite: PHYS 339.
- Corequisite: PHYS 446
- Restriction: Not open to students with credit in PHYS 359 except with permission of instructor
- Terms
- Instructors
- Fritz Buchinger, Jean Barrette
