The Meteorology chair focuses on the role of land ice in the Earth's climate system, the structure of the atmospheric boundary layer and the dynamics of the free atmosphere.

The Physical Oceanography chair focuses on understanding and correctly simulating the ocean component of the climate system and on the interactions between the water motion, sediment transport and bottom changes in coastal seas and estuaries.

The Atmospheric Physics and Chemistry chair focuses on the chemical composition of the atmosphere, the change in its composition due to anthropogenic emissions and interactions between atmospheric chemistry and the Earth's climate.

Through the two-year research Master's programme Climate Physics, talented and motivated students become researchers with a solid grounding in the field of meteorology, physical oceanography and climate.

Within the bachelor's programme of Physics and Astronomy, IMAU provides for several optional courses, such as 'Atmosphere and Climate' and 'Hydrodynamics and Turbulence'. It is also possible to combine several of these courses into a minor.