Climatic variation is one of the most important considerations for environment and society on the Australian continent because it governs fundamentally important environmental phenomena such as fire, flood and drought. This course focuses on the underlying principles required for understanding climate variability, weather, water resources and the occurrence of bushfires, and the fascinating inter-relationships that exist among these key elements of the Australian environment.

The course is structured around the key concepts in each of these elements, including:-
General circulation of the atmosphere, weather systems and climate variability;
The hydrological cycle and extreme weather events like floods and drought; and
The fire regime and factors that result in variation in the occurrence of bushfires across the continent. 

The course has a focus on interactions among weather, climate and bushfires, and there is scope for specialization and the investigation of their management implications and importance for human systems. It is designed to lead students into advanced third year courses in climatology, water resource management and bushfire science. Key components of the course provide insights into ongoing research being undertaken in The Fenner School of Environment & Society.

Note: Graduate students attend joint classes with later year undergraduate students but are assessed separately.

On satisfying the requirements of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

Assessment is to be agreed in discussion with students, but will be based on:

• Tutorial facilitation, including written tutorial rationale and discussion questions, based on selected readings (20%; LO 1, 2, 4, 5)
• Fact sheet preparation on self-selected topic (30%; LO 1, 2, 5)
• Written assignment based on practical work, including critical review of relevant readings (50%; LO 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

5 hours of lectures and practicals per week.  Students are expected to spend an average of a further 4 hours per week on work related to the course.

Bachelor degree; general science knowledge.

SRES6004

Sturman, AP & Tapper, NJ (2006) The Weather and Climate of Australia & New Zealand. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.

Gill, AM, Groves RH & Noble IR (1981) Fire & the Australian Biota. Canberra: Australian Academy of Science.

Cheney, P & Sullivan, A (1997) Grassfires. Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing.