Academics
Extreme Weather Conditions
FSS 195
Professor Shouraseni Sen Roy
Department of Geography and Regional Studies
Tues./Thurs., 9:30-10:45; Section O
One of the most significant consequences of global warming would be an increase in the magnitude and frequency of extreme weather events brought about by increased atmospheric moisture levels, thunderstorm activity, and/or large-scale storm activity. Extreme weather events are generally defined as extreme high or low daily temperatures, extreme heavy daily rainfall amounts, large areas experiencing unusually warm monthly temperatures or even big unusually destructive storm events such as hurricanes and tornadoes. The economic and human losses from such extreme weather events are often severe with long-term impacts. As a result of increasing population densities in the more vulnerable areas of the world greater number of people is affected by these extreme weather events. Some of the topics to be covered during the course of the semester will include tornadoes, hurricanes, hailstorms, blizzards, floods. This seminar will cover the fundamental underlying processes for different extreme weather events. The physical aspects of extra-tropical cyclones, winter weather phenomena, thunderstorm, tropical weather systems, heat waves, droughts, and large-scale, longer-term weather events will be examined.
Shouraseni Sen Roy (Ph.D., Arizona State University, 2005) is an expert on Climatology and Geographic Information Systems. Her work focuses on spatial temporal patterns of precipitation across the Indian subcontinent, using advanced statistical GIS techniques to analyze trends in climatic variables. Professor Sen Roy’s research projects include: the impact of global teleconnections on the summer precipitation in India; trends in the occurrence of extreme precipitation events in India; diurnal patterns in the timing of winter precipitation in the United States; and the impact of cloud cover on diurnal temperature ranges. Her research has been published in The International Journal of Climatology, Physical Geography, Monthly Weather Review, Geophysical Research Letters, and Climate Research.
