MTEOR 311 WEEKLY SUPPORTING MATERIAL
Course Syllabus
Instructor: Dave Flory, 3101 Agronomy Bldg
Objective: This course will introduce you to synoptic meteorology and prepare you to obtain, analyze and interpret weather data from surface, upper air and
satellite data to a degree sufficient to make reasonably accurate forecasts, and assist others
in their forecasting. This is the primary course in which you are trained in the
coding of weather data, and therefore several weeks will be spent on this rather
tedious but important subject. More emphasis, however, will be given to the tools
used to forecast the weather.
Class Meetings: M (12-1 lecture), T (2:00-5:00 lab)
Week 1: General synoptic terminology, introduction to ISU weather lab
Week 2: Surface and upper air data coding/plotting
Week 3: Weather map analysis
Week 4: Vertical structure of the atmosphere/skew-T analysis
Week 5: Basic Norwegian cyclone model theory
Week 6: General circulation, air masses, fronts, jets
Week 7: Synoptic Climatology
Week 8: Use of satellite and radar data in meteorology
Week 9: Important meteorological (primitive) equations, numerical techniques
Week 10: Numerical Weather Prediction (MOS/FOUS)
Week 11: Kinematics of the wind field
Week 12: Balanced wind approximations - geostrophic and gradient winds
Week 13: Thickness, hypsometric equation, thermal wind
Week 14: Case studies and practical forecasting rules
Grading: Weekly Lab Exercises (50%), Midterm (20%), Final Exam (25%), special exercises/contest (5%)