A&O SCI 205C

Main Course

Planetary Upper Atmospheres

Description

Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Aeronomy of upper atmospheres of Earth and other planets and some of their satellites-thermospheric structure and morphology, circulations, and disturbances; ionospheres as collisional and magnetized (unmagnetized) plasmas: currents, drifts, and instabilities. Examples of upper atmospheric interaction with lower atmosphere and magnetosphere. S/U (for majors with consent of instructor after successful completion of written and oral comprehensive examination and for nonmajors at discretion of major department) or letter grading.