Anthropogenic climate change is one of the main environmental threats for mankind. The main objective of this subject is to provide a good knowledge about the fundamentals of climate change science, giving illustrative examples of the main implications that climate change has and could have in the future. This forms the basis for mitigation strategies for consequences of future scenarios, as well as for adapting to such consequences. When a student studies this subject, it is intended firstly that he understands the complexity and magnitude of the problem, and then that he knows various mitigating actions offered by technology. For this reason, the learning process follows this sequence:
- Understanding the basic physical principles that determine global climate.
- Knowing the components of climate system and the complex interactions among them
- Studying climate variability at several timescales
- Analyzing the main causes of observed climate change
- Knowing the techniques of climated modelling and their uncertainties
- Knowing and interpreting current projections of anthropogenic climate change
- Studying the main impacts and consequences of anthropogenic climate change
- Knowing and analyzing strategies for mitigating anthropogenic climate change and adapting to its consequences
Despite the subject having a particularly strong relationship to the subject of Meteorology and Climatology, impacts of climate change occur (or they are expected to occur) in all types of areas, and because of this the subject has a strong multidisciplinary component and provides a knowlege with large practical importance for the development of the environmentalist profession.
Course competences | |
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Code | Description |
CB01 | Prove that they have acquired and understood knowledge in a subject area that derives from general secondary education and is appropriate to a level based on advanced course books, and includes updated and cutting-edge aspects of their field of knowledge. |
CB05 | Have developed the necessary learning abilities to carry on studying autonomously |
E01 | Ability to understand and apply basic knowledge. |
E03 | Awareness of the temporal and spatial dimensions of environmental processes |
E05 | Capacity for qualitative data interpretation |
E06 | Capacity for quantitative data interpretation |
E27 | Know clean technologies and renewable energies. |
E28 | Energy management and optimization capacity |
G01 | Proficiency in a second foreign language at level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. |
G02 | Knowledge of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). |
G03 | Good oral and written communication |
G04 | Ethical commitment and professional deontology |
Course learning outcomes | |
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Description | |
Learn to relate environmental phenomena to the principles of physics that explain them. Especially those related to meteorological, climatological, air, noise and radiation pollution processes. | |
To know the projections of anthropogenic climate change, its causes, its main consequences, the techniques for its study and the strategies for its mitigation. | |
To understand the components of the climate system, the complex interactions between them and climate variability at different time scales. | |
Additional outcomes | |
Not established. |
Training Activity | Methodology | Related Competences (only degrees before RD 822/2021) | ECTS | Hours | As | Com | Description | |
Class Attendance (theory) [ON-SITE] | Lectures | CB05 E01 E03 E05 | 0.84 | 21 | N | N | ||
Computer room practice [ON-SITE] | Combination of methods | CB01 CB05 E01 E03 E05 E06 G01 G02 | 0.6 | 15 | Y | N | ||
Writing of reports or projects [OFF-SITE] | Combination of methods | CB01 CB05 E01 E03 E05 E06 E27 E28 G01 G02 G03 G04 | 1.2 | 30 | Y | N | ||
Project or Topic Presentations [ON-SITE] | Combination of methods | E03 E05 E06 E27 E28 G02 G03 | 0.24 | 6 | Y | N | ||
Study and Exam Preparation [OFF-SITE] | Self-study | CB01 CB05 E01 E03 E05 E06 E27 E28 G01 | 1.5 | 37.5 | N | N | ||
Progress test [ON-SITE] | Assessment tests | CB01 CB05 E01 E03 E05 E06 G03 | 0.04 | 1 | Y | N | ||
Final test [ON-SITE] | Assessment tests | CB01 CB05 E01 E03 E05 E06 E27 E28 G03 | 0.08 | 2 | Y | Y | ||
Total: | 4.5 | 112.5 | ||||||
Total credits of in-class work: 1.8 | Total class time hours: 45 | |||||||
Total credits of out of class work: 2.7 | Total hours of out of class work: 67.5 |
As: Assessable training activity Com: Training activity of compulsory overcoming (It will be essential to overcome both continuous and non-continuous assessment).
Evaluation System | Continuous assessment | Non-continuous evaluation * | Description |
Final test | 35.00% | 100.00% | Continuous assessment: Students that have passed the midterm exam (with a minimum grade of 4 over 10) only have to be assessed for the second part of the subject. Students that have not passed the midterm exam have to be assessed for the two parts of the subject. In this later case, the weight of the final exam in the final grade will be 70%. Non-continuous evaluation: the final grade of the subject will be the grade obtained in the final exam. |
Practicum and practical activities reports assessment | 15.00% | 0.00% | |
Progress Tests | 35.00% | 0.00% | Midterm exam for the first part of the topics. If passed, this part will not be included in the final exam. For passing this exam, a minimum grade of 4 over 10 is needed. |
Theoretical papers assessment | 15.00% | 0.00% | |
Total: | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Not related to the syllabus/contents | |
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Hours | hours |
Author(s) | Title | Book/Journal | Citv | Publishing house | ISBN | Year | Description | Link | Catálogo biblioteca |
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Ahrens, C. Donald | Meteorology today : an introduction to weather, climate and the environment | Brooks/Cole | 0-534-37379-8 | 2000 | |||||
Archer D. | Global Warming: Understanding the forecast (2nd edition) | John Wiley & Sons Ltd | 978-0-470-94341-0 | 2011 | |||||
Archer D. & Rahmstorf S. | The Climate Crisis: An Introductory Guide to Climate Change | Cambridge University Press | 978-0-521-73255-0 | 2010 | |||||
Barros, V.R., C.B. Field, D.J. Dokken, M.D. Mastrandrea, K.J. Mach, T.E. Bilir, M. Chatterjee, K.L. Ebi, Y.O. Estrada, R.C. Genova, B. Girma, E.S. Kissel, A.N. Levy, S. MacCracken, P.R. Mastrandrea, and L.L. White (eds.) | IPCC, 2014: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part B: Regional Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change | Cambridge University Press | 2014 | http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg2/ | |||||
Edenhofer, O., R. Pichs-Madruga, Y. Sokona, E. Farahani, S. Kadner, K. Seyboth, A. Adler, I. Baum, S. Brunner, P. Eickemeier, B. Kriemann, J. Savolainen, S. Schlömer, C. von Stechow, T. Zwickel and J.C. Minx (eds.) | IPCC, 2014: Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of climate change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change | Cambridge University Press | 2014 | http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg3/ | |||||
Field, C.B., V.R. Barros, D.J. Dokken, K.J. Mach, M.D. Mastrandrea, T.E. Bilir, M. Chatterjee, K.L. Ebi, Y.O. Estrada, R.C. Genova, B. Girma, E.S. Kissel, A.N. Levy, S. MacCracken, P.R. Mastrandrea, and L.L. White (eds.) | IPCC, 2014: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change | Cambridge University Press | 2014 | http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg2/ | |||||
Hartmann, Dennis L. | Global physical climatology | Academic Press | 0-12-328530-5 | 1994 | |||||
Paul Hawken (Ed.) | Drawdown : the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming | New York | Penguin Books | 978-0-14-313044-4 | 2017 | ||||
Peixoto, J. P. & Oort A. H. | Physics of climate | American Institute of Physics | 0-88318-712-4 | 1992 | |||||
Ruddiman, William F. | Earth's climate : past and future | W. H. Freeman and Company | 0-7167-3741-8 | 2002 | |||||
Stocker, T.F., D. Qin, G.-K. Plattner, M. Tignor, S.K. Allen, J. Boschung, A. Nauels, Y. Xia, V. Bex and P.M. Midgley (eds.) | IPCC, 2013: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change | Cambridge University Press | 978-1-107-66182 | 2013 | http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg1/ | ||||
Talley L.D., Pickard G.L., Emery W.J., Swift J.H. | Descriptive Physical Oceanography: An Introduction (Sixth Edition) | Boston | Elsevier | 978-0-7506-4552-2 | 2011 |