Hurricanes, floods, tornados, and earthquakes have been grabbing a large share of news headlines in recent weeks. To get a better understanding of what causes these and other weather phenomena, students who sign up for a basic meteorology course offered during the winter term at Wayne State University will examine the latest online weather data, maps, forecasts, satellite and radar imagery. What’s more, the entire course, titled “Meteorology, the study of weather,” will be available online for the first time at the university.

“We’ve offered the course for a number of years, but never with the Internet component,” explains geology professor Mark Baskaran. Earlier this year, he attended a weeklong workshop sponsored by the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and the National Weather Service (NWS) at the NWS Training Center in Kansas City to learn about teaching the course online.

The annual workshop is a key component of a special AMS program to provide students at minority-serving higher education institutions with access to online weather studies. Called the Online Weather Studies Diversity Project, the program is aimed at extending geoscience study opportunities to students who belong to groups underrepresented in the sciences, mathematics, and technology and to increase participation by minorities. Wayne State is among 145 institutions participating in the diversity project.

Availability of the weather studies course via the Internet will be particularly convenient for out-of-state students, Baskaran points out. Registrants still would be required to take tests in the classroom or make other arrangements with the instructor. But all other required course work may be accomplished away from campus.

Updated regularly to keep up with the latest advances in weather study, GEL 1370 is required for science majors who plan to earn teaching degrees. Students get hands-on learning experience by completing two laboratory-like investigations on current weather each week.

Baskaran will be invited to report on his course experiences and student interest in additional geoscience opportunities at the 2008 AMS Annual Meeting in New Orleans. For more information about the course, contact professor Baskaran at 313-577-3262 or Baskaran@wayne.edu.

Wayne State University is a premier institution of higher education offering more than 350 academic programs through 11 schools and colleges to nearly 33,000 students.