| Code | Faculty | Department |
|---|---|---|
| 02240074 | Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences | Department: Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology |
| Credits | Duration | NQF level |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum duration of study: 1 year | Total credits: 135 | NQF level: 08 |
Note: Additional modules may be required in order to reach the desired level of competency
Minimum credits: 135
Core credits: 99
Elective credits: 36
Additional information:
Appropriate honours modules from the other disciplines in the Department or Faculty may be taken on approval by the Honours coordinator or Head of Department.
Module content:
Initial atmospheric state, observation network, data assimilation, initialization, parameterisation, post-processing. Ensemble methods, probability forecasting, forecast verification. Global circulation models, limited-area and mesoscale models, variable resolution models, dispersion models. Seamless prediction. Practical applications.
Module content:
Atmospheric oscillations: Linear perturbation theory (shallow water gravity waves, inertia gravity waves, Rossby waves). Baroclinic instability. Two-layer model. Energetics of Baroclinic waves. Zonally averaged circulation. Angular momentum budget. Lorenz energy cycle. Programming in metereology.
Module content:
Basic principles and characteristics of the weather radar. The influence of the atmosphere on the propogation of electro-magnetic waves. Weather radar equation. The influence of attenuation on observations. The measurement of precipation with a radar. Doppler Radar. Convective storm analysis with radar.
Module content:
An overview of the weather and climate of the tropics and the mid-latitudes. Air masses. Instability and cloud formation. Weather systems of the tropics and mid-latitudes. Analysis of weather systems by utilising remote sensed data.
Module content:
Overview of the basic principles of satellite imagery. Types of meteorological satellites. Basic principles of radiation. The different images available, their resolution and the advantages and limitations of each image. Image interpretation.
Module content:
Introduction to the philosophy of scientific research. Hypothesis testing. Reporting of scientific research. Identification of an appropriate research project. Compilation of a research proposal. Literature survey. Acquisition and manipulation of information. Introduction to innovative strategy and research management. Preparation of a research report (or paper). Presentation of research findings.
Module content:
The principles of experimental design as required for the selection of an appropriate research design. Identification of the design limitations and the impact thereof on the research hypotheses and the statistical methods. Identification and application of the appropriate statistical methods needed. Interpreting of statistical results and translating these results to the biological context.
Module content:
Definitions of woodlands and forests and vegetation and forest resources in southern Africa; Classification of forest and woodland in southern Africa; Woodland dynamics including disturbance, recruitment, growth and mortality, recovery after disturbance; Ecosystem services (microclimate and nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration etc); Sustainable forest resource management (resource assessment, socio-economic assessment e.g. wood and non-forest products, participatory resource management processes); Forest health; Monitoring of resource-use impacts and adaptive management; Development of a framework for sustainable conservation and use of non-timber forest products; Climate change and resilience. Forest disease and pathology.
Module content:
The aim of the module is to provide knowledge and understanding of image analysis and information extraction methods in remote sensing. The emphasis is on equipping students with knowledge and skills necessary to process imagery to extract diverse biophysical and geospatial information. The course gives insight into the possibilities and limitations of the application of modern remote sensing/image acquisition systems for Earth and atmosphere research purposes at different levels of detail.
Module content:
Principles of integrated environmental management; environmental impact assessment; environmental management systems (ISO 14000 series); water resource management; environmental legislation; site investigation guidelines; natural hazard risk assessment; seismicity; project management and professional business practice.Geological models and software.
Module content:
Fundamentals of seasonal forecasting. The El Niño/Southern Oscillation. Empirical orthogonal functions. Canonical correlation analysis. Empirical forecast models practical. Sea-surface temperature models. Fully coupled and two-tiered general circulation modelling. Dynamical and empherical downscaling techniques. Significance testing using Monte Carlo techniques. Modelling pitfalls. User application forecasting. Projections of decadal and multi dacadal climate anomalies.
Module content:
Introduction to, and the importance of the boundary layer. Structure of the boundary layer. Transfer of heat (molecular and turbulent). Impacts of the turbulent nature of the boundary layer on the dynamics of atmospheric motions. Closure and boundary layer parameterisation. Applications to air pollution dispersion.
Module content:
An introduction to mesoscale meteorology. Surface mesoscale features, instability, severe storm classification and thunderstorms, flooding and flash flooding events.
Module content:
A module on an aspect or aspects of meteorology not covered in the existing options with special emphasis in Cloud microphysics and Basic concepts of numberical modelling.
Module content:
Scaling and interpretation of equations of motion for mesoscale processes. The role of stability and other trigger actions on initial cloud formation and the evolution of clouds. Shallow and deep convective processes. Tropical and mid-latitude cloud generation processes and characteristics. Cloud splitting. Parameterisation of radiation and heat in atmospheric models. Microphysics parameterisations in numerical models.
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