Geophysical Sciences
The physical and chemical processes that drive the Earth's engine and their manifestations at the surface
The Geophysical Sciences stream focuses on the physical and chemical processes that drive the Earth’s engine and their manifestations at the surface. You will learn to apply physics and chemistry from quantum mechanics to continuum mechanics to understand what the Earth and the planets are made of, what their properties are, and how they make the Earth such an active planet. You will apply your knowledge of physics, maths and chemistry and become skilled with instruments, data collection and computational analysis.
Objectives
Our objectives in Geophysical Sciences are to understand:
- How the Earth came to be.
- What is it made of?
- What are the properties and behaviour of Earth materials, from rick to ice?
- What is the structure of the interior? How do we know?
- Earthquakes and seismology, volcanoes and volcanolgy.
- Physics of oceans and atmosphere.
- Geofluids: water, ice, magma, and hydrocarbons.
- Geophysical data, computation, equipment and analysis.
- A comprehensive view of Earth’s system and its dynamical evolution.
Modules:
Year 1
| All Geophysical Sciences stream students take: |
| The Earth (GEOL0007) |
| History of Life (GEOL0003) |
| and choose 15 credits from: |
| From Petrology to Petrogenesis (GEOL0002) |
| Dynamic Earth (GEOL0004) |
| Surface Processes (GEOL0006) (includes a field trip) |
Year 2
| All Geophysical Sciences stream students take: |
| Global Geophysics (GEOL0012) |
| and choose 30 - 45 credits from: |
| Earth Materials (GEOL0001) |
| Geochemistry (GEOL0008) |
| Sedimentology and Stratigraphy (GEOL0010) (includes a field trip during the Easter break) |
| Igneous Petrology (GEOL0011) |
| Principles of Climate (GEOL0013) |
| Maps, Images and Structures (GEOL0015) (includes a field trip during the Easter break) |
| Structural Geology and Tectonics (GEOL0016) |
| Isotope Geology (GEOL0017) |
| Numerical Methods for Earth Sciences (GEOL0018) |
Year 3
| All Geophysical Sciences stream students majoring must take: |
| Geodynamics and Global Tectonics (GEOL0057) |
| and choose 15 credits from: |
| Ocean Physics and Climate Change (GEOL0022) |
| Seismology I (GEOL0029) |
| Students majoring take 30 - 45 credits and students minoring take 0 - 15 credits of the following: |
| Field Geophysics (GEOL0020) (field course) |
| Crustal Dynamics, Mountain Building and Basin Evolution (GEOL0023) (field course) |
| Earth Resources and Sustainability (GEOL0025) |
| Groundwater Science (GEOL0027) |
| Seismology II (GEOL0030) |
| Metamorphism and Metamorphic Processes (GEOL0032) |
| Statistics for Geoscientists (GEOL0061) |
Year 4
MSci Co-ordinator: Prof. Ian Wood
| All Geophysical Sciences stream students must take: |
| Independent MSci Project (GEOL0072) - Msci Research Project |
| Earth Resources and Sustainability (GEOL0025) |
| Students majoring can take 30 - 60 credits and students minoring can take 0 - 30 credits of the following: |
| Ocean Physics and Climate Change (GEOL0022) |
| Earth and Planetary Materials (GEOL0026) |
| Advanced Geochemistry (GEOL0031) |
| Physical Volcanology and Volcanic Hazard (GEOL0041) |
| Tectonic Geomorphology (GEOL0043) |
| Palaeoceanography (GEOL0044) |
| Deep Earth and Planetary Modelling (GEOL0046) |
| Statistics for Geoscientists (GEOL0061) |
This programme may be modified. Notice of any changes will be posted on the Natural Sciences website.
Resources:
All Modules: See the list of all the different Modules at Earth Sciences UCL.
How to Apply: Everything you need to know about applying for a degree in Earth Sciences UCL
Contact Us:
Call: +44 (0)20 3108 6339
Email:earthsci@ucl.ac.uk