Program Overview

Program Overview

The University of Copenhagen offers a course titled "Ice and Climate" as part of its Continuing and Professional Education program. This course focuses on ice sheets and their role in climate studies, particularly on how to infer knowledge of their past evolution and extract information on the climate of the past from ice cores drilled on a dynamic ice sheet.

Course Content

The course aims to provide the tools for understanding ice core data, including how to create time scales for the ice cores and how to model the evolution of ice sheets in response to climate change. There will be a special focus on the interpretation of Greenland water stable isotope records and borehole temperature records, and how to extract past temperature conditions and the ice sheet evolution from these records using data combined with models.

Course Structure

The course is based on lectures and computer experiments where students will use programming tools (e.g., Python) for creating models of ice sheet evolution, ice sheet time scales, and ice sheet temperatures. The course will cover the following subjects:

• Ice sheet flow and evolution, with focus on the role of ice flow and climate on the extent, thickness, and internal stratigraphy.
• Ice core time scales based on steady-state flow models.
• Stable water isotopes and their climatic interpretation, Rayleigh modeling of isotopic fractionation.
• Non-steady state ice flow modeling, taking into account changes in precipitation and ice sheet evolution.
• Densification of snow to ice.
• Temperatures in ice sheets, the roles of advective and diffusive processes.
• Methods and data used in ice sheet and ice core studies.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course, students are expected to have the following abilities and knowledge:

• The ability to make simple ice sheet flow models.
• The ability to create modeled steady-state and non-steady state ice core time scales.
• The ability to model and interpret temperature profiles in ice sheets.
• The ability to make simple models of stable isotopes in the water cycle and interpret ice core stable isotope profiles.
• Knowledge of the climatic evolution during the past glacial and present interglacial.
• An understanding of the atmospheric fractionation processes and firn diffusive processes responsible for the climatic signals in ice core stable isotope profiles.
• An understanding of densification process involved in the compaction of snow to ice.
• Knowledge of the advective and diffusive processes involved in ice sheet temperatures.
• Knowledge of ice sheet flow and evolution and the processes involved.
• Knowledge of data and methods used for ice core studies.
• Ability to critically read technical scientific papers and both implement and improve upon models and techniques described in such papers.
• Ability to use numerical methods (in e.g., Python software) for ice core data analysis and for implementing various numerical models.

Teaching and Learning Methods

The course will consist of lectures and exercises.

Literature

Teaching material will be announced at the Absalon course page. An example of relevant literature: K.M. Cuffey and W.S.B. Paterson: Physics of Glaciers.

Recommended Prerequisites

Physics and mathematics courses corresponding to the first year of the physics B.Sc.

Remarks

The course is identical to NFYA06016U Is og klima (geofys4). It is not allowed to pass both courses.

Assessment

The course assessment will be based on a written assignment (48 hours take-home project) and all aids are allowed. The marking scale is a 7-point grading scale, and there is no external censorship. For the re-exam, there will be a 30 minutes oral exam with 30 minutes preparation, and all aids are allowed.

Course Details

• Language: English
• Course number: NFYB20000U
• ECTS: 7.5 ECTS
• Programme level: Bachelor
• Duration: 1 block
• Placement: Block 2
• Schedule group: B
• Capacity: No limitation – unless you register in the late-registration period (BSc and MSc) or as a credit or single subject student.
• Study board: Study Board of Physics, Chemistry and Nanoscience
• Contracting department: The Niels Bohr Institute
• Contracting faculty: Faculty of Science
• Course Coordinator: Bo Møllesøe Vinther
• Teacher: Bo Møllesøe Vinther, Christine Schøtt Hvidberg

Workload

• Category: Lectures, Preparation, Practical exercises, Exam
• Hours: 24 (Lectures), 142 (Preparation), 24 (Practical exercises), 16 (Exam)
• Total: 206 hours

Timetable

The course is scheduled in block 2. For the exact timetable, please refer to the course information page.

Additional Information

For bachelor or kandidat students, please find the course in the course catalog for students. For any further information, please refer to the course information page or contact the course coordinator.