Table of Contents

Foreword to the French edition; Foreword to the English edition; Preface; Acknowledgements; List of symbols; 1. Half a century of numerical weather prediction; 2. Weather prediction equations; 3. Finite differences; 4. Spectral methods; 5. The effects of discretization; 6. Barotropic models; 7. Baroclinic model equations; 8. Some baroclinic models; 9. Physical parameterizations; 10. Operational forecasting; Appendix A. Examples of non-hydrostatic models; Further reading; References; Index.

Promotional Information

A practical, accessible overview of weather forecasting and climate modeling techniques for graduate students, researchers and professionals in atmospheric science.

About the Author

Jean Coiffier is now retired from Météo-France, where he was Ingénieur en Chef des Ponts et Chaussées, and is a member of the Société Météorologique de France. His involvement in meteorological science began in 1968 at the new Algerian Meteorological Service, implementing elements of a modest meteorological forecast suite on a small computer, before joining the Direction de la Météorologie Nationale (later Météo-France) where he took part in the development and implementation of operational models. In 1989 he became the head of the General Forecast Office. He worked there until his retirement, also giving regular lectures on numerical weather prediction to students of the École Nationale de la Météorologie and training courses to professional forecasters. He also played an active role in realising Computed Aided Learning modules devoted to numerical modelling and forecasting methods.

Reviews

"The present book is a good and very useful review of techniques and methods..provides interesting historical information...clearly organized, well written, and beautifully illustrated...There is also much to find, learn, and enjoy in this book for specialists in fluid dynamics, meteorologists, applied mathematicians, and other researchers interested in this area." - Yuri N. Skiba, Mathematical Reviews

"The topic is treated in full mathematical detail on the advanced undergraduate level and above…The text is clearly written and the line of thought is easy to follow…This book deserves a recommendation both for advanced students of meteorology and as a reference for experts in the field." - Manuel Vogel, Contemporary Physics