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GEOG 320The Cryosphere

Units
0.50
Faculty
Environment
Subject
Geography and Environmental Management

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 2 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

This course provides a comprehensive overview of the cryosphere and cryosphere-atmosphere interactions. Topics covered include the material and thermodynamic properties of snow and ice, the role of the cryosphere in weather and climate, and the response of the cryosphere to climate change (past, present, and future). Students will be introduced to, and experiment with, snow and ice process models.

Prerequisites

  • Must have completed the following:

Antirequisites

None listed.

Leads to

No course lists it as a requisite.

Reviewed on UW Flow

100% liked it50% easy75% useful

From 3 ratings and 3 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • All the labs are very useful and force you to learn smaller, but important research skills usually not taught in undergrad, which I really appreciated. However, since the answers to the lab are tested on, if you got the wrong answer in the lab, you will not have the correct answer for the upcoming test, so you need to make that a part of you study planning.
    The tests were pretty reasonable, but the exam was brutal - it was said in class and implied in the exam review that it would be cumulative and ask questions from everywhere in the course, but instead focused very heavily on smaller details from the last few lectures.
    There was no option to select who my prof was, so I will state here…

    May 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Love the content in this course. Very interesting and relevant to global climatic change. 2 midterm tests and a final, content is dispersed in the midterms but final is cumulative. Pretty easy content to understand as well but man, Wes' marking is absolutely brutal, I wish he was more clear about what he's looking for in responses earlier on instead of later. Also, there was no choice in the tests (multiple or choose your question), all short/long answer-style. Labs were fine, done in-class. A surprisingly high amount of work to be done in excel for only 4% per lab, though.

    May 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • I really liked this course! Wes is engaging and nice, though the way he grades tests can make it difficult to get good marks. The content is pretty new and not covered in other courses.

    Apr 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar