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This introductory course surveys four broad topics:

• Marine Geology: The forces that shape our Earth and its global ocean; 
• Physical Oceanography: The forces that move our oceans; 
• Marine Biology: The flora and fauna that inhabit our oceans; 
• Global Climate Change: The anthropogenic forces that are impacting oceans.

You will quickly learn that there is significant overlap and interdependence between these disciplines. 

Oceanography is not just about facts and figures. Below are some fundamental concepts that form the core of the science that you must learn in order to understand the basic processes operating in the oceans. These concepts by no means cover everything that you are expected to learn, but rather form a foundation of fundamental principles and ideas. Some of these concepts will probably be familiar to you, but perhaps their application to oceanography will be new. You will find that many of the concepts are applicable to multiple aspects of oceanography and will appear repeatedly during the course.

Learning Objectives

• Draw conclusions from oceanic data by interpreting plots and graphs;
• Be able to use logic, data, reasoning, critical thinking, and/or the scientific method to formulate and/or answer a question that is posed about oceanic systems;
• Apply principles from the course to inform everyday choices relating to our oceans and our climate; 
• Develop an enthusiasm for the skills and perspectives of all fields within oceanic science.

In this course, you will

   Investigate the interrelationships of geological, physical, biological, and chemical processes found in our oceans;

   Investigate and derive a “view” of our planet’s density stratified interior using opportunistic seismic events; outline the history and physics of plate tectonics; and analyze/predict the unique propagational tendencies of compressional (P type), surface, and transverse (S type) seismic waves;

   Graph ocean thermal, density, and salinity profiles and investigate the resultant vertical stratification; investigate and predict tidal variations caused by the sun and the moon; analyze the energy coupling of the atmosphere and ocean and mathematically calculate the characteristics of wave propagation; derive the directions and intensity of the ocean currents from wind driven Ekmann transport and dynamic topography; and trace the refraction of underwater sound in response to varying ocean temperatures;  

   Investigate the sources of ocean primary production and analyze the upper trophic levels that rely so critically on its success; outline and profile the remarkable taxonomic diversity of the ocean’s major invertebrate phyla; and identify marine mammal types (baleen and toothed whales) from recorded underwater vocalizations.

Meet Your Instructor

Carl Hager

  Carl.Hager@colorado.edu

Dr. Carl Hager is a Teaching Assistant Professor with the Global Studies and Environment and Natural Sciences Residence Academic Programs at CU ��«����Ƶ. Additionally, he is an Assistant Professor Adjunct with the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Department. He teaches various courses on campus to include Meteorology, Marine Ecology, Climate Science and Oceanography. His research background includes anthropogenic (Navy Sonar, Construction, Seismic Survey) sound impacts on marine species and most specifically marine mammals. A Physical Oceanographer and Marine Mammal Acoustician by trade, his background is based in the acoustics of whales. 

Dr. Hager completed both his Ocean Acoustics master's and doctoral degrees while at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey California. Both of these studies involved the use of existing underwater and bottom mounted acoustic arrays (originally designed to detect submarines) in the detection and localization of cetacean vocalizations. His modeling efforts have analyzed a broad spectrum of whale sound propagation, from very low frequency blue whales "calls" to the high frequency whistles, clicks and grunts of dolphins. 

A 28 year and retired Naval Veteran, he served as a Naval Aviator in the P-3 Orion, an anti submarine warfare aircraft which prosecuted (tracked) world wide deployments of non-US submarines. He has over 1300 hours logged in the airframe and was stationed at various coastal locations in the Atlantic, Pacific and Mediterranean. He completed his active duty service as a Permanent Military Professor with the Oceanography Department at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland from 2006 to 2014.  He became a faculty member at CU ��«����Ƶ in 2019.