METR 360 (Weather Analysis and Forecasting I)

Fall, 2017

Syllabus

   

     

                           Exam Review Sheets              Blechman Final Exam week schedule
Review sheet for Exam 1 Review sheet for Exam 2 Review sheet for Final Exam

     

   

Labs
Lab workbook (pdf - requires Adobe Reader)
Radiosonde launch Sep 13 Lake Effect,  Lab 9 IDV Nor'easter lab

First Assignment

Read and be ready to discuss the novella “"Profession" by Issac Asimov (web link to abelard.org) ” 
How do the concepts in Asimov's story apply to our course?

(Click here for pdf version)

Sample Exams (these are the exams given last year)

Sample Exam 1

Sample Exam 2

Sample Final Exam

 

Fall 2017 exams

Exam 1

Exam 2
 
Final Exam

Lecture Topics

Norwegian Cyclone Model Review

Lecture PowerPoint

Schematic of a mature cyclone

(following Bjerknes and Solberg)

 

Fronts

Lecture PowerPoint

Cold front:  features and schematic cross section

Warm front:  features and schematic cross section

Margules' formula for slopes of fronts

Analyzing fronts

 

Stability

Lecture PowerPoint

Sample skew-T log-P diagrams:

Examples (from NCAR-RAP):

Stable lapse rate

Albany (Abs. stable)

Absolutely unstable lapse rate

Flagstaff (Abs. unstable)

Conditionally unstable lapse rate

Miami (Conditionally unstable)

    

Upper Air

Lecture PowerPoint

   

Air Masses

Lake Effect PowerPoint

 Lake Effect lab


Guidance

Lecture PowerPoint

Decoding NAM MOS (from NWS)

Decoding GFS short range MOS (from NWS)

Decoding GFS extended range MOS (from NWS)


Waves in the Westerlies (Rossby waves)

Lecture PowerPoint

Here are some places to view hemispheric upper air maps and see the waves:

300 mb from Unisys

University of Wyoming (with 5-year archive)

Penn. State (N. Hemisphere 500 hPa and MSL)

Ensemble hemispheric 500 mb forecast, next two weeks

Vertical Motion

Lecture PowerPoint

     

Potential Vorticity

Lecture Powerpoint

Summary of Potential Vorticity conservation (cyclogenesis)

For Lab 11: Unidata home page (Pull down menu for downloads to get the IDV. You must register but it's free and safe.)

IDV files
Composite Radar
Loop GFS 3D 500MBsfc
Single Frame MSLP Satellite Composite
GFS Jan 27 2015.zidv

Jet Streams

Lecture PowerPoint

 

Click to go to the Meteorology Club home page