The department Physics and Chemistry of the Atmosphere consists of several groups with different topical orientation. They range from determination of spectra of atmospherically relevant gases by help of Fourier transform spectrometer to the measurement of aerosols and trace gases in the troposphere and the scientific support and data analysis of satellite projects such as GOME and SCIAMACHY.
The Department of Remote Sensing is likewise made up of several work teams doing atmospheric science using microwave sensors from the ground and from science aircrafts. Other groups are using satellite data to do special cartography of surface properties such as sea ice maps.
The ocean influences our climate in many ways. Oceanic currents transport large amounts of heat around the globe and cause an additional heating or cooling of the continents. The ocean takes up considerable amounts of greenhouse gases that otherwise would be stored within the atmosphere and thereby would contribute to the heating of the atmosphere. The Department of Oceanography investigates changes in these climate-relevant processes in the ocean by applying a wide spectrum of modern experimental methods.
The Department of Terrestrial Environmental Physics investigates the environmental behaviour of artificial and natural isotopes, for example of medically used isotopes in rivers. This way, information on transport and deposition processes can be obtained. Moreover, some isotopes can be used for radiometric dating of sediments, which is of high interest in climate research. The group also operates Bremen State’s Radiometric Laboratory, responsible for routine monitoring and emergency response.
The joint IUP-MARUM working group called LAMOS (Laboratory for Modeling and Observation of the Earth System) was founded in 2016. The Department of Inverse Modeling of the Earth System aims to improve our understanding of the complex mechanisms controlling the emission, transport, transformation and deposition of atmospheric pollutants with the use of state-of-the-art numerical models and novel instrumentation.
The Department of Climate Modelling belongs to Faculty 1 of the University of Bremen and is part of the Institute of Environmental Physics (IUP). In cooperation with the department "Earth System Model Evaluation" located at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the department analyses Earth system model simulations of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) in combination with observations to better understand and project the climate system and anthropogenic climate change. The evaluation of ESMs with observations is crucial for an improved process understanding of the climate system and is also a vital prerequisite for more trustworthy climate projections of the 21st century needed as basis for guidelines in climate policy. The group’s tasks in particular include the development and application of efficient methods for ESM evaluation and the development of new numerical tools to analyse large data sets.
Teaching
Teaching: The aim of the Environmental Physics Course is to provide basic education in the study areas concerning the ocean, the atmosphere and the solid Earth. The courses are taught by faculty from the IUP and the Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research.
The aim of the Space Sciences and Technologies Course is to provide basic education in Sensing, Processing and Communication. Elective courses in Environmental Physics, Electrical Engineering, Production Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Sciences are integrated in the curriculum.
