The goal of physical oceanography is to measure and understand evolving patterns of circulation and water properties over a wide range of scales, from turbulent microstructure through basin-scale gyres and the global overturning circulation.
Students participate actively in our many observational programs as part of their thesis research.
Our graduate program stresses a mastery of geophysical fluid dynamics as the basis for research, augmented by select advanced topics and overview classes in Atmospheric Science, Biological and Chemical Oceanography, and Marine Geology and Geophysics. Students graduate as both experts in their chosen research, and with a broad understanding of fluid-environment interactions. With nearly 30 faculty and affiliates, there are many strong areas of current interest. In ocean climate research, the moored buoy array being run by NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory along the equatorial Pacific is the largest measurement array ever placed in the ocean. Combined with satellite observations it has been essential in improving our ability to monitor, understand and predict El Nino and its dramatic role in the global climate cycle.