About Us

The University of Utah Department of Atmospheric Sciences is the leading program of weather and climate related research and education in the Intermountain West and is recognized internationally for its expertise in cloud-climate interactions, mountain meteorology, climate physics and dynamics, weather and climate modeling, and tropical meteorology. Our research and teaching endeavors provide the knowledge and tools needed by society to address the challenges posed by hazardous weather and climate change in the 21st century. We are a student-centered department with faculty who are dedicated graduate student mentors and classroom instructors. Several of our professors have won college or university-wide teaching awards.

We offer a minor, B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences. The minor introduces students to the impacts of the atmosphere upon society and enables students to apply scientific principles in an interdisciplinary way. Our undergraduate major uniquely emphasizes mountain weather and climate, which is a natural extension of the geographic setting of the University of Utah. At the graduate level we offer a comprehensive education in the atmospheric and related sciences and enable students to develop the intellectual and critical analysis skills needed to conduct independent research in a specialized area of study. Our alumni include broadcast meteorologists, National Weather Service and military meteorologists, scientists and engineers at environmental consulting firms, university professors, and even the Director of Weather for the U.S. Air Force.