The Master's Programme in Atmospheric Sciences (ATM-MP) is a research-oriented programme and the obtained Master's degree gives you a good foundation if you are interested in proceeding to doctoral level studies. The Doctoral Programme of Atmospheric Sciences (ATM-DP) organises the doctoral education of the divisions and research groups involved in ATM-MP, and thus provides a straightforward opportunity for you to continue with postgraduate studies.
All the units teaching in the programme belong to the National Centre of Excellence (FCoE) in Atmospheric Science – From Molecular and Biological processes to the Global Climate (ATM), which is a multidisciplinary team of the Departments of Physics, Forest Sciences and Chemistry at the University of Helsinki, the Department of Applied Physics at the University of Eastern Finland (Kuopio) and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.
The main objective of FCoE ATM is to quantify the feedbacks between the atmosphere and biosphere in a changing climate. The main focus of the research is on investigating the following topics:
- Understanding the climatic feedbacks and forcing mechanisms related to aerosols, clouds, precipitation and biogeochemical cycles.
- Developing, refining and utilising the newest measurement and modelling techniques, from quantum chemistry to observations and models of global earth systems.
- Creating a comprehensive understanding of the role of atmospheric clusters and aerosol particles in regional and global biogeochemical cycles of water, carbon, sulphur, nitrogen and their linkages to atmospheric chemistry.
- Integrating the results in the context of understanding regional and global Earth systems.
In addition to the research focus of FCoE, current research in hydrospheric geophysics at the University of Helsinki has an emphasis on cryology, with a focus on the effect of aerosols on Indian glaciers, the impact of climate change on the Arctic environment, the dynamics of the Austfonna ice cap in Svalbard, and the winter season in the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea.