Although this option also provides an excellent background for graduate studies, it is well suited for students who wish to pursue professional employment. Students in the meteorology program at UM benefit from small classes and close personal attention by the faculty to their educational needs. They can work with scientists at the Rosenstiel School on a range of exciting research projects within the Divisions of Meteorology and Physical Oceanography and Marine and Atmospheric Chemistry . The location of campus is ideal for experiencing tropical, coastal, and marine environments. The United States experience more severe weather events than any other country in the world.
Hurricanes affect coastal areas and are capable of causing considerable loss of life and property.
Atmospheric scientists use improved observing systems and models to better understand the factors that control development and evolution of storms so that more accurate forecasts and warnings can be made. The equations that define the time evolution of winds, temperature, water vapor, clouds and precipitation in the atmosphere cannot be solved exactly. Numerical models have been developed to provide approximate solutions that predict the evolution of weather phenomena ranging from global jet streams to the circulations in cumulus clouds. During the past decade, there has been increased evidence that man's activities may be altering the composition of the atmosphere. Uncertainty about the effects of human activities on climate remain, however, due largely to the inadequate representation of clouds and ocean interactions in numerical models used to predict climate change.