ATOC Overview

The Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (ATOC) is an interdisciplinary program that provides an educational and research environment to examine the dynamical, physical, and chemical processes that occur in the atmosphere and the ocean. A major theme is the establishment of a physical basis for understanding, observing, and modeling climate and global change.

Graduate students, research staff, and faculty work together on a wide range of research topics: large-scale dynamics of the ocean and the atmosphere; air-sea interaction; radiative transfer and remote sensing of the ocean and the atmosphere; sea ice and its role in climate; cloud-climate interactions; atmospheric chemistry and aerosols; atmospheric technology; extended weather and climate prediction; hydrological processes; boundary layer measurement and modeling; and planetary atmospheres.

ATOC is coordinated with the Environmental Program at the University of Colorado. Interdisciplinary education and research opportunities exist with the Hydrology Program and the Environmental Policy Program. Interdisciplinary research opportunities also exist with the Cooperative Institute for Environmental Studies (CIRES), the Institute for Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR), the Center for Complexity, and the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP).

ATOC has extensive computer facilities and laboratories in remote sensing, chemistry, and hydrodynamics. The presence of leading laboratories in the environmental sciences in Boulder, including the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the NOAA Environmental Research Laboratories, provides additional opportunities for a rich educational experience. Opportunities also exist for involvement in field programs.