Introduction to Atmosphere and Ocean Dynamics (MATH2241)

MATH2241 is an Applied Mathematics Level II course. See the course overview below.

This course replaces MATH2240 Introduction to Oceanography and Meterology, which was a 3UOC course.

Units of credit: 6

Prerequisites: MATH1231 or MATH1241 or MATH125 or DPST1014

Cycle of offering: Term 1 

Graduate attributes: The course will enhance your research, inquiry and analytical thinking abilities.

More information: The course handout contains information about course objectives, assessment, course materials and the syllabus.

Important additional information as of 2023

UNSW Plagiarism Policy

The University requires all students to be aware of its policy on plagiarism.

For courses convened by the School of Mathematics and Statistics no assistance using generative AI software is allowed unless specifically referred to in the individual assessment tasks.

If its use is detected in the no assistance case, it will be regarded as serious academic misconduct and subject to the standard penalties, which may include 00FL, suspension and exclusion.

The Online Handbook entry contains up-to-date timetabling information.

If you are currently enrolled in MATH2241, you can log into UNSW Moodle for this course.

This course aims to provide an introduction to the mathematical models that describe circulation in the ocean and atmosphere. Students will gain a basic understanding of the physical processes and forcing mechanisms in the ocean and atmosphere with real examples. After successfully completing this course students will be able to identify the relevant physical approximations and mathematical techniques needed to model a range of commonly occurring geophysical flows. Students should also gain an appreciation of the limitations involved in the modelling process as applied to atmosphere and ocean dynamics.

An introduction to mathematical models for the circulation of the atmosphere and oceans. The equations of motion are exploited so as to provide simplified models for phenomena including: waves, the effects of the Earth's rotation, the geostrophic wind, upwelling, storm surges. Feedback mechanisms are also modelled: the land/sea breeze, tornadoes, tropical cyclones. Models for large-scale phenomena including El Nino and the East Australian Current will be discussed as well as the role of the atmosphere-ocean system in climate change.