Includes bibliographical references and index.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Overview of climate variability and climate science; 2. Basics of global climate; 3. Physical processes in the climate system; 4. El Niño and year-to-year climate prediction; 5. Climate models; 6. The greenhouse effect and climate feedbacks; 7. Climate model scenarios for global warming; References; Index.

"Provides students with a solid foundation in climate science, with which to understand global warming, natural climate variations, and climate models. As climate models are one of our primary tools for predicting and adapting to climate change, it is vital we appreciate their strengths and limitations. Also key is understanding what aspects of climate science are well understood and where quantitative uncertainties arise. This textbook will inform the future users of climate models and the decision-makers of tomorrow by providing the depth they need, while requiring no background in atmospheric science and only basic calculus and physics. Developed from a course that the author teaches at UCLA, material has been extensively class-tested and with online resources of colour figures, Powerpoint slides, and problem sets, this is a complete package for students across all sciences wishing to gain a solid grounding in climate science"-- Provided by publisher.