Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate
An essential primer on atmospheric processes and their important role in the climate system

The atmosphere is critical to climate change. It can amplify shifts in the climate system, and also mitigate them. This primer offers a short, reader-friendly introduction to these atmospheric processes and how they work, written by a leading expert on the subject.

Giving readers an overview of key atmospheric processes, David Randall looks at how our climate system receives energy from the sun and sheds it by emitting infrared radiation back into space. The atmosphere regulates these radiative energy flows and transports energy through weather systems such as thunderstorms, monsoons, hurricanes, and winter storms. Randall explains how these processes work, and also how precipitation, cloud formation, and other phase changes of water strongly influence weather and climate. He discusses how atmospheric feedbacks affect climate change, how the large-scale atmospheric circulation works, how predicting the weather and the climate are fundamentally different challenges, and much more. This is the ideal introduction for students and nonspecialists. No prior experience in atmospheric science is needed, only basic college physics.

Authoritative and concise, Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate features a glossary of terms, suggestions for further reading, and easy-to-follow explanations of a few key equations. This accessible primer is the essential introduction to atmospheric processes and the vital role they play in our climate system.

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Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate
An essential primer on atmospheric processes and their important role in the climate system

The atmosphere is critical to climate change. It can amplify shifts in the climate system, and also mitigate them. This primer offers a short, reader-friendly introduction to these atmospheric processes and how they work, written by a leading expert on the subject.

Giving readers an overview of key atmospheric processes, David Randall looks at how our climate system receives energy from the sun and sheds it by emitting infrared radiation back into space. The atmosphere regulates these radiative energy flows and transports energy through weather systems such as thunderstorms, monsoons, hurricanes, and winter storms. Randall explains how these processes work, and also how precipitation, cloud formation, and other phase changes of water strongly influence weather and climate. He discusses how atmospheric feedbacks affect climate change, how the large-scale atmospheric circulation works, how predicting the weather and the climate are fundamentally different challenges, and much more. This is the ideal introduction for students and nonspecialists. No prior experience in atmospheric science is needed, only basic college physics.

Authoritative and concise, Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate features a glossary of terms, suggestions for further reading, and easy-to-follow explanations of a few key equations. This accessible primer is the essential introduction to atmospheric processes and the vital role they play in our climate system.

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Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate

Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate

by David Randall
Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate

Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate

by David Randall

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Overview

An essential primer on atmospheric processes and their important role in the climate system

The atmosphere is critical to climate change. It can amplify shifts in the climate system, and also mitigate them. This primer offers a short, reader-friendly introduction to these atmospheric processes and how they work, written by a leading expert on the subject.

Giving readers an overview of key atmospheric processes, David Randall looks at how our climate system receives energy from the sun and sheds it by emitting infrared radiation back into space. The atmosphere regulates these radiative energy flows and transports energy through weather systems such as thunderstorms, monsoons, hurricanes, and winter storms. Randall explains how these processes work, and also how precipitation, cloud formation, and other phase changes of water strongly influence weather and climate. He discusses how atmospheric feedbacks affect climate change, how the large-scale atmospheric circulation works, how predicting the weather and the climate are fundamentally different challenges, and much more. This is the ideal introduction for students and nonspecialists. No prior experience in atmospheric science is needed, only basic college physics.

Authoritative and concise, Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate features a glossary of terms, suggestions for further reading, and easy-to-follow explanations of a few key equations. This accessible primer is the essential introduction to atmospheric processes and the vital role they play in our climate system.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780691143750
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication date: 05/06/2012
Series: Princeton Primers in Climate , #6
Edition description: New Edition
Pages: 288
Product dimensions: 4.90(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

David Randall is professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University.

Table of Contents

Preface vii

Chapter 1: Basics 1

Chapter 2: Radiative Energy Flows 27

Chapter 3: How Turbulence and Cumulus Clouds Carry Energy Upward 55

Appendix to Chapter 3: More about Eddy Fluxes 96

Chapter 4: How Energy Travels from the Tropics to the Poles 103

Appendix to Chapter 4: Conservation of

Momentum on a Rotating Sphere 134

Chapter 5: Feedbacks 140

Chapter 6: The Water Planet 160

Chapter 7: Predictability of Weather and Climate 183

Chapter 8: Air, Sea, Land 206

Chapter 9: Frontiers 227

Notes 233

Glossary 239

Suggestions for Further Reading 247

Bibliography 253

Index 261

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"In this book, one of the leaders of the field condenses a huge amount of climate theory into a very small space. This is done in an informal narrative style with a minimum of equations and other hard technical details, but with a serious dedication to constructing a coherent and logical storyline without glossing over essentials. I have not seen another book like this."—Adam Sobel, Columbia University

"Atmosphere, Clouds, and Climate achieves a good balance between intuitive physical reasoning and more formal arguments where necessary. This lucid book gives a tour of the most important atmospheric processes determining climate."—Tapio Schneider, California Institute of Technology

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