Key contents

Studienplaene2

Introduction to Meteorology
The basic course supplies first insight into the subject and mediates fundamental and most important know-how as well as scientific content. Elementary meteorological variables, i.e. pressure, temperature, wind and precipitation, and their physical meaning are presented, as well as more specific quantities such as vorticity or potential temperature.

Mathematics and Physics
Alongside the introductory lecture, the first three terms are predominantly occupied by Mathematics and Physics. The lectures impart basic methods and strategies which later will be extended and applied to the field of Meteorology.

Theory
In first place, atmospheric Thermodynamics and Dynamics form the theoretical kernel of the BSc program. Concepts such as the Navier-Stokes equation or the conservation laws of mass and energy constitute the basis to describe the atmosphere.

Statistics, Numerics, Modeling
Due to the massive amount of meteorological data to be analyzed and evaluated in short time spans, computers have become indispensable tools in Meteorology. Therefore, important topics such as statistics or meteorological programming are subject of designated lectures. The lecture on modeling introduces important meteorological models, their structure and functionality.

Chemistry, Clouds and Aerosols
To understand atmospheric processes and mechanisms, apart from equations also chemical reactions and small scale physical processes need to be understood. These are handled, amongst others, in lectures on cloud physics and cloud chemistry.

Synoptic Meteorology
Education in synoptic meteorology is also a major topic in the bachelors degree at our institute. During the course 'Synoptic Meteorology' the gap between theoretical education and phenomenological understanding of weather situations and events is bridged to allow a precise forecast of the weather of the coming days. The lecture series is accompanied by a practical course using the German Weather Service (DWD) forecasting system NinJo and a weekly professional weather analysis and forecast sessions by expert forecasters from the DWD.

Excursions, Practicals
Several experiments constitute the practicals for beginners as well as advanced students, allowing the students to practice the skills achieved from meteorological lectures in situations of realistic research character. In small groups, the students operate measuring instruments and evaluate recorded data or they analyze and interpret results of meteorological models. During excursions, the students gain insight into research fields of other meteorological institutions in Germany.

Bachelor and Master theses
The course programs are completed by the Bachelor resp. Master theses, during which the students self-dependently work on concrete research topics and evaluate their work in a written documentation.