Climate Curriculum Modules on Volcanic Eruptions, Geoengineering, and Nuclear Winter

Abstract:

To support a climate dynamics multidisciplinary curriculum for graduate and senior university students, I will describe on-line modules on volcanic eruptions and climate, geoengineering, and nuclear winter. Each of these topics involves aerosols in the stratosphere and the response of the climate system, but each is distinct, and each is evolving as more research becomes available. As reported for the first time in the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, volcanic eruptions are a natural analog for the climate impacts of potential anthropogenic aerosol injections into the stratosphere, either sulfates from potential attempts to cool the climate to counteract global warming, or smoke that would be produced from fires in cities and industrial targets in a nuclear war. The volcanic eruptions module would stand alone, and would also serve as a prerequisite for each of the other two modules, which could be taught independently of each other. Each module includes consideration of the physical climate system as well as impacts of the resulting climate change. Geoengineering includes both solar radiation management and carbon dioxide reduction. The geoengineering and nuclear winter modules also include consideration of policy and governance issues. Each module includes a slide set for use in lecturing, links to related resources, and student exercises. The modules will be regularly updated.