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Major Concentration Earth, Atmosphere and Ocean Sciences (36 credits)

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Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences     Degree: Bachelor of Arts and Science

Program Requirements

The Major Concentration Earth, Atmosphere and Ocean Sciences, which is restricted to students in the B.A. & Sc., is a sequence of courses designed to permit a degree of specialization in these disciplines.

Required Courses (18 credits)

  • ATOC 214 Introduction: Physics of the Atmosphere (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : An introduction to physical meteorology designed for students in the physical sciences. Topics include: composition of the atmosphere; heat transfer; the upper atmosphere; atmospheric optics; formation of clouds and precipitation; instability; adiabatic charts.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Huang, Yi (Fall)

    • Fall

    • 3 hours lecture

    • Prerequisite: CEGEP Physics, or the combination of PHYS 131 and PHYS 142, or permission of instructor.

  • ATOC 215 Oceans, Weather and Climate (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Laws of motion, geostrophic wind, gradient wind. General circulation of the atmosphere and oceans, local circulation features. Air-sea interaction, including hurricanes and sea-ice formation, extra-tropical weather systems and fronts, role of the atmosphere and oceans in climate.

    Terms: Winter 2013

    Instructors: Yau, Man K (Winter)

    • Winter

    • 3 hours lecture

    • Prerequisite: ATOC 214

  • ATOC 309 Weather Radars and Satellites (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Basic notions of radiative transfer and applications of satellite and radar data to mesoscale and synoptic-scale systems are discussed. Emphasis will be put on the contribution of remote sensing to atmospheric and oceanic sciences.

    Terms: Winter 2013

    Instructors: Fabry, Frederic; Szejwach, Gerard (Winter)

    • Winter

    • 3 hours lecture

    • Prerequisite: ATOC 215

  • ATOC 315 Thermodynamics and Convection (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Buoyancy, stability, and vertical oscillations. Dry and moist adiabatic processes. Resulting dry and precipitating convective circulations from the small scale to the global scale. Mesoscale precipitation systems from the cell to convective complexes. Severe convection, downbursts, mesocyclones.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Szejwach, Gerard (Fall)

  • EPSC 210 Introductory Mineralogy (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Crystal chemistry and identification of the principal rock-forming and ore minerals. Elementary crystallography. Optional 2-day field trip.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Paquette, Jeanne (Fall)

  • EPSC 212 Introductory Petrology (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : A survey of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks and the processes responsible for their formation. The laboratory will emphasize the recognition of rocks in both hand-specimen and thin section using optical microscopes.

    Terms: Winter 2013

    Instructors: Francis, Donald M (Winter)

    • Winter

    • 2 hours lectures, 3 hours laboratory

    • Prerequisite: EPSC 210

Complementary Courses (18 credits)

A minimum of 18 credits, at least 6 of which must be at the 300 level or higher, distributed as follows:

3 credits from:

  • EPSC 201 Understanding Planet Earth (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Learn about Earth's origin, its place in the solar system, its internal structure, rocks and minerals, the formation of metal and fossil fuel deposits, and the extinction of dinosaurs. Discover the impact of the volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and mountain chains on Earth's past, present and future. Explore 125 million-year-old Mount Royal.

    Terms: Fall 2012, Winter 2013

    Instructors: Williams-Jones, Anthony E (Fall) Mucci, Alfonso (Winter)

    • Fall or Winter

    • 3 hours lectures; afternoon field trips

    • Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking EPSC 233.

  • EPSC 233 Earth and Life History (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Interpretation of stratified rocks; history of Earth with special emphasis on the regions of North America; outline of the history of life recorded in fossils.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Halverson, Galen (Fall)

    • Fall

    • 3 hours lectures

9 credits from:

  • EPSC 203 Structural Geology (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Primary igneous and sedimentary structures, attitudes of planes and lines, stress and strain, fracturing of rocks, faulting, homogeneous strain, description and classification of folds, foliation and lineation, orthographic and stereographic projections.

    Terms: Winter 2013

    Instructors: Hynes, Andrew J (Winter)

    • Winter

    • 2 hours lectures, 3 hours laboratory

  • EPSC 220 Principles of Geochemistry (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Basic concepts in geochemistry and the application of geochemical principles of chemistry to geological subdisciplines. Particular emphasis on origin of elements, controls on their distribution in Earth and cosmos, isotopes, organic geochemistry and water chemistry. Application of phase diagrams to geology.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Baker, Don (Fall)

    • Fall

    • 2 hours lecture, 3 hours laboratory

  • EPSC 231 Field School 1 (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Geological mapping of selected areas, preparation of maps, reports from field notes, aerial photographs, etc.

    Terms: Winter 2013, Summer 2013

    Instructors: Hynes, Andrew J (Winter) Hynes, Andrew J (Summer)

  • EPSC 320 Elementary Earth Physics (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Physical properties of Earth and the processes associated with its existence as inferred from astronomy, geodesy, seismology, geology, terrestrial magnetism and thermal evolution.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Liu, Yajing (Fall)

    • Fall

    • 3 hours lectures

    • Prerequisite: MATH 222

  • EPSC 331 Field School 2 (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Two week field studies in selected branches of the geosciences.

    Terms: Winter 2013, Summer 2013

    Instructors: Halverson, Galen; Rowe, Christen Danielle (Winter) Halverson, Galen; Rowe, Christen Danielle (Summer)

    • Two-week intensive field school to a range of national and international locations.

    • Prerequisites: enrolment in U2 or U3 EPS program and permission of the instructor.

    • Alternates years with EPSC 341.

  • EPSC 341 Field School 3 (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Two week field studies in selected branches of the geosciences to examine processes in geology.

    Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    • Two week intensive field school to a range of national and international locations.

    • Prerequisites: Enrolment in U2 or U3 EPS program and permission of the instructor.

    • Alternates years with EPSC 331.

  • EPSC 425 Sediments to Sequences (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Processes and products of modern and ancient carbonate and siliciclastic depositional environments. Sequence stratigraphy as a tool for studying the fundamental controls (sea level, tectonics, sediment supply, etc.) on stratigraphic architecture.

    Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2012-2013 academic year.

  • EPSC 455 Sedimentary Geology (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : This course discusses the origin, diagenesis, classification and economic importance of sedimentary rocks. Students will learn about the physical properties of sedimentary rocks, including porosity and permeability, different techniques for analyzing those rocks (thin sections, hand specimens, wireline logs) and the types of sedimentary basins within which sediments accumulate.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Halverson, Galen (Fall)

  • EPSC 542 Chemical Oceanography (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : History of chemical oceanography. Seawater composition and definition of salinity/chlorinity. Minor and trace-element distribution in the ocean. Geochemical mass balance. Dissolved gases in sea water. CO2 and the carbonate system. Chemical speciation. Physical chemistry of seawater. Organic matter and the carbon cycle in the marine environment. Sediment geochemistry.

    Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    • Fall

    • 3 hours lectures

    • Prerequisites: CHEM 213, CHEM 257 or equivalents, or registration in the Graduate Program in Oceanography.

  • EPSC 549 Hydrogeology (3 credits)

    Offered by: Earth & Planetary Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Earth & Planetary Sciences : Introduction to groundwater flow through porous media. Notions of fluid potential and hydraulic head. Darcy flux and Darcy's Law. Physical properties of porous media and their measurement. Equation of groundwater flow. Flow systems. Hydraulics of pumping and recharging wells. Notions of hydrology. Groundwater quality and contamination. Physical processes of contaminant transport.

    Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2012-2013 academic year.

    • Winter

    • 3 hours lectures, 1-2 hours laboratory

    • Prerequisite: permission of the instructor

6 credits from:

  • ATOC 219 Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : An introduction to the basic topics in atmospheric chemistry. The fundamentals of the chemical composition of the atmosphere and its chemical reactions. Selected topics such as smog chamber, acid rain, and ozone hole will be examined.

    Terms: Winter 2013

    Instructors: Kos, Gregor (Winter)

  • ATOC 412 Atmospheric Dynamics (3 credits)

    Offered by: Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Equations of motion in rotating coordinates, elementary applications, circulation and vorticity, the planetary boundary layer, synoptic scale motions, Rossby waves and inertial oscillations.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Straub, David N (Fall)

  • GEOG 308 Principles of Remote Sensing (3 credits)

    Offered by: Geography (Faculty of Science)

    Overview

    Geography : A conceptual view of remote sensing and the underlying physical principles. Covers ground-based, aerial, satellite systems, and the electromagnetic spectrum, from visible to microwave. Emphasis on application of remotely sensed data in geography including land cover change and ecological processes.

    Terms: Fall 2012

    Instructors: Kalacska, Margaret (Fall)

    • Fall

    • 3 hours and laboratory periods

    • Corequisite(s): GEOG 201

    • Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ATOC 308

Bachelor of Arts & Science—2012-2013 (last updated Feb. 14, 2013) (disclaimer)
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