Earth and Environmental Sciences

EESC UN1001 DINOSAURS AND HISTORY OF LIFE. 4.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: basic high school science and math.
Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: basic high school science and math. Lab is a hands-on introduction to geochronology, paleontology, and historical geology with field trips. (See W1401 for lectures only.) Dinosaurs: a spectacular example of a common, highly successful form of life, dominant for 135 million years. Where did they come from? Why were they so successful? Why did they die out? … or did they? A basic introduction to the historical sciences and the interface between geology and biology

EESC UN1030 OCEANOGRAPHY. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Enrollment limited to 160.

Explore the geology of the sea floor, understand what drives ocean currents and how ocean ecosystems operate. Case studies and discussions centered on ocean-related issues facing society

EESC UN1401 DINOSAUR ＆ HISTORY OF LIFE-LEC. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: basic high school science and math.
Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: basic high school science and math. Dinosaurs: a spectacular example of a common, highly successful form of life, dominant for 135 million years. Where did they come from? Why were they so successful? Why did they die out? … or did they? A basic introduction to the historical sciences and the interface between geology and biology

EESC UN1600 EARTH RESOURCES ＆ SUSTAIN DEV. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

Prerequisites: none; high school chemistry recommended.
Prerequisites: none; high school chemistry recommended. Survey of the origin and extent of mineral resources, fossil fuels, and industrial materials, that are non renewable, finite resources, and the environmental consequences of their extraction and use, using the textbook Earth Resources and the Environment, by James Craig, David Vaughan and Brian Skinner. This course will provide an overview, but will include focus on topics of current societal relevance, including estimated reserves and extraction costs for fossil fuels, geological storage of CO2, sources and disposal methods for nuclear energy fuels, sources and future for luxury goods such as gold and diamonds, and special, rare materials used in consumer electronics (e.g. ;Coltan; mostly from Congo) and in newly emerging technologies such as superconducting magnets and rechargeable batteries (e.g. heavy rare earth elements, mostly from China). Guest lectures from economists, commodity traders and resource geologists will provide ;real world; input. Discussion Session Required

EESC UN2100 EARTH'S ENVIRO SYST: CLIM SYST. 4.50 points.

Prerequisites: high school algebra. Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics; and one semester of college science. Origin and development of the atmosphere and oceans, formation of winds, storms and ocean currents, reasons for changes through geologic time. Recent influence of human activity: the ozone hole, global warming, water pollution. Laboratory exploration of topics through demonstrations, experimentation, computer data analysis, and modeling. Students majoring in Earth and Environmental Sciences should plan to take EESC W2100 before their senior year to avoid conflicts with Senior Seminar

EESC UN2200 EARTH'S ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS: THE SOLID EARTH. 4.50 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Priority given to Columbia and Barnard earth science, environmental science, and environmental biology majors should enrollment limits be necessary.

Prerequisites: high school algebra and chemistry. Recommended preparation: high school physics.
Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics; and one semester of college science. Exploration of how the solid Earth works, today and in the past, focusing on Earth in the Solar system, continents and oceans, the Earth's history, mountain systems on land and sea, minerals and rocks, weathering and erosion, glaciers and ice sheets, the hydrological cycle and rivers, geochronology, plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, energy resources. Laboratory exploration of topics through examination of rock samples, experimentation, computer data analysis, field exercises, and modeling. Columbia and Barnard majors should plan to take W2200 before their senior year to avoid conflicts with the Senior Seminar

EESC UN2330 SCIENCE FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVPT. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

The course provides students with an understanding of Earth's natural systems that is essential to addressing the multi-faceted issues of sustainable development. After completing the course, students should be able to incorporate scientific approaches and perspectives into their research in other fields or policy decisions and be able to use scientific methods of data analysis. The semester will highlight the climate system and solutions from both physical and ecological perspectives; water resources; food production and the cycling of nutrients; and the role of biodiversity in sustainable development. The course emphasizes key scientific concepts such as uncertainty, experimental versus observational approaches, prediction and predictability, the use of models, and other essential methodological aspects

EESC UN3031 CHEMISTRY OF CLIMATE. 3.00 points.

By the end of this course, students will understand: The biogeochemical cycles driving the composition of trace gas and aerosol species that are both long- and short-lived in the atmosphere that influence climate by directly interacting with radiation (i.e. greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, CFCs, aerosols) and those that do so mainly by altering the concentrations of other gases (OH, NOx, etc.); The effects of these gas and aerosol species on climate and atmospheric composition; Climate mitigation strategies that are being considered in response to climate warming. This course is designed for undergraduate students seeking a quantitative introduction to climate and climate change science. EESC V2100 (Climate Systems) is not a prerequisite, but can also be taken for credit if it is taken before this course

EESC UN3101 Geochemistry for a Habitable Planet. 3 points.

Prerequisites: any 1000-level or 2000-level EESC course; MATH V1101 Calculus I and CHEM W1403 General Chemistry I or their equivalents.

The origin, evolution, and future of our planet, based on the book How to Build a Habitable Planet by Wallace S. Broecker. This course will focus on the geochemical processes that built Earth from solar material, led to its differentiation into continents and ocean, and have maintained its surface at a comfortable temperature. Students will participate in a hands-on geochemistry project at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

EESC UN3400 COMPUTATIONAL EARTH SCIENCE. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: Required: at least a semester of calculus and physics; any 1000-level or 2000-level EESC course. Computer models are essential for understanding the behavior of complex natural systems in geosciences. This course is an introduction to writing computer models to simulate Earth processes. Students will learn methods for numerical modeling of a variety of geoscience topics, such as nonlinear systems of air chemistry, ocean currents, atmospheric dispersion, and more. Simulations will be created by learning to program with a user-friendly language (Python). Student learning will be facilitated through a combination of lectures, in-class exercises, homework assignments and a final project on a student-selected topic

EESC UN3501 MASS EXTINCTIONS: DEATH AND REBIRTH IN THE FOSSIL RECORD. 3.00 points.

Mass Extinctions are caused by catastrophic shifts in the earth's climate, solid earth, and life systems. These major inflection points in the history of life leave lasting impacts and require study across a variety of disciplines. In this course we will use these 'system breakdowns' to take a bird's eye view of the history of life. We'll study what happens when vast magmatic provinces spew gases into a darkened sky and try to pick up the pieces as asteroid impacts desecrate the world around them. Along the way, we'll consider how our own actions have the potential to shape the world around us, and the nature of our relationship with an ever-changing earth system. Over the course of the semester students will practice integrating paleontological data from a variety of sources to study both evolutionary hypotheses and the causes of climate change in deep time. We will incorporate foundational ideas from geochronology and stratigraphy as a group, to place fossils into a broader geologic context. Students from all backgrounds who have taken at least one of the three "Systems" courses or Dinosaurs and the History of Life are welcome

EESC UN3901 SENIOR SEMINAR. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: EESC BC3800 or EESC BC3801 and a good grounding in basic sciences.
Guided, independent, in-depth research culminating in the senior thesis in the spring. Includes discussion about scientific presentations and posters, data analysis, library research methods and scientific writing. Students review work in progress and share results through oral reports. Weekly seminar to review work in progress and share results through oral and written reports

EESC UN3904 INDEPENDENT RESEARCH IN CLIMATE SYSTEM SCIENCE. 3.00 points.

In this course, students develop and complete a one-semester independent research project in an area of Climate System Science. Each student works closely with a research Mentor, and the course experience for all students is coordinated with a course Instructor. This course fulfills the Capstone experience for the Climate System Science major in DEES. This course cannot be combined with one semester of Senior Seminar UN3901, which is designed as a 1-year course

EESC GU4008 Introduction to Atmospheric Science. 3 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

Prerequisites: advanced calculus and general physics, or the instructor's permission.

Basic physical processes controlling atmospheric structure: thermodynamics; radiation physics and radiative transfer; principles of atmospheric dynamics; cloud processes; applications to Earth's atmospheric general circulation, climatic variations, and the atmospheres of the other planets. 

EESC GU4050 GLOBAL ASSMT-REMOTE SENSING. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Enrollment limited to 24. Priority given to graduate students in the natural sciences and engineering.

Prerequisites: Course Cap 20 students. Priority given to graduate students in the natural sciences and engineering. Advanced level undergraduates may be admitted with the instructor's permission. Calculus I and Physics I & II are required for undergraduates who wish to take this course.
Prerequisites: Course Cap 20 students. Priority given to graduate students in the natural sciences and engineering. Advanced level undergraduates may be admitted with the instructors permission. Calculus I and Physics I ＆ II are required for undergraduates who wish to take this course. General introduction to fundamentals of remote sensing; electromagnetic radiation, sensors, interpretation, quantitative image analysis and modeling. Example applications in the Earth and environmental sciences are explored through the analysis of remote sensing imagery in a state-or-the-art visualization laboratory

EESC GU4113 Mineralogy and Mineral Resources. 4.00 points.

Prerequisites: introductory geology or the equivalent, elementary college physics and chemistry, or the instructor's permission.
Prerequisites: introductory geology or the equivalent, elementary college physics and chemistry, or the instructors permission. Minerals come in dazzling colors, amazing shapes and with interesting optical effects. But mineralogy is also an essential tool for the understanding of Earth evolution. Minerals represent fundamental building blocks of the Earth system and planetary bodies. Minerals form through geological and biological processes such as igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary from high to low temperatures, from the deep interior to the Earth’s surface and related to volcanism, tectonics, weathering, climate and life. Minerals are one of our most important sources of information on such processes through Earth’s history. Minerals also represent important natural resources and are fundamental to the global economy and modern technology as we know it. In this course, we will approach mineralogy from the standpoint of earth and environmental sciences, the study of mineralogy however is of interest to many other sciences including Material Sciences, Planetology, Archeology, Biology, Chemistry and Physics with most of the 20 Nobel Prizes awarded for research involving crystals being in these last fields. The goal of this class is to (1) understand the physical and chemical properties of minerals, (2) learn techniques of mineral identification with an emphasis on optical mineralogy, (3) understand the relationship between minerals and the broader geological context

EESC GU4600 EARTH RESOURCES ＆ SUSTAIN DEV. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

Prerequisites: none; high school chemistry recommended.
Prerequisites: none; high school chemistry recommended. This course is open to graduate students, and juniors and seniors within DEES, Sus Dev, Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, and APAM - or with the instructors permission. Survey of the origin and extent of mineral resources, fossil fuels, and industrial materials, that are non renewable, finite resources, and the environmental consequences of their extraction and use, using the textbook Earth Resources and the Environment, by James Craig, David Vaughan and Brian Skinner. This course will provide an overview, but will include focus on topics of current societal relevance, including estimated reserves and extraction costs for fossil fuels, geological storage of CO2, sources and disposal methods for nuclear energy fuels, sources and future for luxury goods such as gold and diamonds, and special, rare materials used in consumer electronics (e.g. ;Coltan; mostly from Congo) and in newly emerging technologies such as superconducting magnets and rechargeable batteries (e.g. heavy rare earth elements, mostly from China). Guest lectures from economists, commodity traders and resource geologists will provide ;real world; input

EESC GU4835 Wetlands and Climate Change. 3 points.

Given in alternate years. Enrollment limited to 20. Priority given to juniors and seniors.

Prerequisites: introductory biology or chemistry, or the instructor's permission.

Analysis of modern wetland dynamics and the important ecological, biogeochemical, and hydrological functions taking place in marshes, bogs, fens, and swamps, with a field emphasis. Wetlands as fossil repositories, the paleoenvironmental history they provide, and their role in the carbon cycle. Current wetland destruction, remediation attempts, and valuation. Laboratory analysis and field trips.

EESC GU4882 ORGANIC GEOCHEMISTRY IN EARTH ＆ ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES. 3.00 points.

This course explores the fundamentals of organic geochemistry and its applications to the study of Earth History. The course will examine the structure of organic molecules and their fate in the Earth System, and will provide students with a theoretical grounding as well as hands-on training in analytical methods in organic geochemistry. The objective of the course is to prepare students to critically evaluate the ways in which organic geochemical approaches are applied to a variety of Earth Science topics, industrial applications, and organo-pollutant and environmental health research. The course is aimed at students with interests in a wide range of Earth Science disciplines, including paleoclimate, carbon cycling, cell metabolism, petroleum geology, astrobiology, and environmental science. Pre-requisites: One year of Chemistry is required. Organic Chemistry is recommended, but not required. Recommended: EESC2100 (Climate System), EESC2200 (Solid Earth)

EESC GU4925 INTRO TO PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: a solid background in mathematics, physics, and chemistry.
Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: a solid background in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Topics: Physical properties of seawater, hydrography (water masses and their distribution), dispersal (advection and diffusion), ocean dynamics (Navier Stokes equation), processes (eddies, waves, tides), large-scale circulation (wind-driven gyres, overturning circulation)

EESC UN1006 WHAT'S NEW IN EARTH, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND CLIMATE SCIENCE?. 1.00 point.

This course provides an overview of current research at the world-renowned Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. Various Lamont researchers will present their latest research in earth, environmental, and climate science, providing students a cross-section of research projects across the LDEO divisions. Students are expected to attend each class, and meaningfully participate in class discussion

EESC UN1010 GEOLO EXCUR TO DEATH VALLEY,CA. 2.00 points.

Enrollment limited to 20.

The trip is restricted to first-years and sophomores from Columbia College/General Studies, Barnard College, and the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Early application is advised, please visit the course website below for the application deadline. A spring-break excursion focused on the geology of Death Valley and adjacent areas of the eastern California desert. Discussion sessions ahead of the trip provide necessary background. Details at: https://eesc.columbia.edu/content/eesc-un1010

EESC UN2100 EARTH'S ENVIRO SYST: CLIM SYST. 4.50 points.

Prerequisites: high school algebra. Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics; and one semester of college science. Origin and development of the atmosphere and oceans, formation of winds, storms and ocean currents, reasons for changes through geologic time. Recent influence of human activity: the ozone hole, global warming, water pollution. Laboratory exploration of topics through demonstrations, experimentation, computer data analysis, and modeling. Students majoring in Earth and Environmental Sciences should plan to take EESC W2100 before their senior year to avoid conflicts with Senior Seminar

EESC UN2200 EARTH'S ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS: THE SOLID EARTH. 4.50 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Priority given to Columbia and Barnard earth science, environmental science, and environmental biology majors should enrollment limits be necessary.

Prerequisites: high school algebra and chemistry. Recommended preparation: high school physics.
Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics; and one semester of college science. Exploration of how the solid Earth works, today and in the past, focusing on Earth in the Solar system, continents and oceans, the Earth's history, mountain systems on land and sea, minerals and rocks, weathering and erosion, glaciers and ice sheets, the hydrological cycle and rivers, geochronology, plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, energy resources. Laboratory exploration of topics through examination of rock samples, experimentation, computer data analysis, field exercises, and modeling. Columbia and Barnard majors should plan to take W2200 before their senior year to avoid conflicts with the Senior Seminar

EESC UN2300 EARTH'S ENVIRO SYST: LIFE SYST. 4.50 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Priority given to Columbia and Barnard earth science, environmental science, and environmental biology majors should enrollment limits be reinstated.

Prerequisites: high school algebra. Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics.
Prerequisites: high school algebra. Recommended preparation: high school chemistry and physics. Role of life in biogeochemical cycles, relationship of biodiversity and evolution to the physical Earth, vulnerability of ecosystems to environmental change; causes and effects of extinctions through geologic time (dinosaurs and mammoths) and today. Exploration of topics through laboratories, data analysis, and modeling. REQUIRED LAB: EESC UN2310. Students will be expected to choose a lab section during the first week of class from the options listed in the Directory of Classes. Co-meets with EEEB 2002

EESC UN3010 FIELD GEOLOGY. 3.00 points.

Fee: to be determined.

This is a field geology course focusing on the Apennine Mountains of central Italy, where a developing “accretionary prism” (associated with oceanic crust subduction) can be observed directly. Students will learn how to interpret the evolution of paleo-environments from the sediment lithologies, textures, fossils, compositions; and the tectonic history from the present day spatial and structural relationships. The rocks range from early Mesozoic oceanic crust and sediments to late Cenozoic sediments impacted by the rise of the Alps. The course visits several classic geological localities, including the Gubbio site of the discovery that the dinosaur extinction was caused by a meteorite, a Carrara Marble quarry (favored by Michelangelo for his sculptures), evaporite sediments from the dry-down of the Mediterranean, the magnificent Frasassi Cave, and effects of recent earthquakes. Priority: This course has a limited number of spaces, and enrollment requires the instructors' permission. Students interested in enrolling are instructed to contact the instructors by email. Priority is given to Columbia College and General Studies senior and junior majors and minors in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and Barnard senior and junior majors and minors in Environmental Science. Barnard students must receive permission from the Barnard Environmental Science department chair in order to receive the subsidy

EESC UN3109 CLIMATE PHYSICS. 3.00 points.

This is a calculus-based treatment of climate system physics and the mechanisms of anthropogenic climate change. By the end of this course, students will understand: how solar radiation and rotating fluid dynamics determine the basic climate state, mechanisms of natural variability and change in climate, why anthropogenic climate change is occurring, and which scientific uncertainties are most important to estimates of 21st century change. This course is designed for undergraduate students seeking a quantitative introduction to climate and climate change science. EESC V2100 (Climate Systems) is not a prerequisite, but can also be taken for credit if it is taken before this course

EESC UN3201 SOLID EARTH DYNAMICS. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: any 1000-level or 2000-level EESC course; MATH V1101 Calculus I and PHYS W1201 General Physics I or their equivalents. Concurrent enrollment in PHYS W1201 is acceptable with the instructor's permission.
Prerequisites: any 1000-level or 2000-level EESC course; MATH UN1101 Calculus I and PHYS UN1201 General Physics I or their equivalents. Concurrent enrollment in PHYS UN1201 is acceptable with the instructors permission. Properties and processes affecting the evolution and behavior of the solid Earth. This course will focus on the geophysical processes that build mountains and ocean basins, drive plate tectonics, and otherwise lead to a dynamic planet. Topics include heat flow and mantle circulation, earthquakes and seismic waves, gravity, Earths magnetic field, and flow of glaciers and ice sheets

EESC UN3328 Glacial Geomorphology. 3.00 points.

This course focuses on the impact of glaciers on landscapes. We will learn about the interactions and feedbacks between landscapes and climate. We will cover what is known about glacial geomorphology, as well as the modern research methods and outstanding scientific problems

EESC UN3901 SENIOR SEMINAR. 3.00 points.

Prerequisites: EESC BC3800 or EESC BC3801 and a good grounding in basic sciences.
Guided, independent, in-depth research culminating in the senior thesis in the spring. Includes discussion about scientific presentations and posters, data analysis, library research methods and scientific writing. Students review work in progress and share results through oral reports. Weekly seminar to review work in progress and share results through oral and written reports

EESC GU4009 CHEMICAL GEOLOGY. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: physical chemistry or the instructor's permission.
This course will examine geological problems from a standpoint of thermodynamic and kinetic theory. Theoretical thermodynamic concepts will be used to derive the crystallization depth and temperature of metamorphic and magmatic minerals, describe the solubility of volatile species in magmas, predict the composition of volcanic gas mixtures, model the nucleation and growth of crystals and bubbles in a melt and determine the chemical interaction between water and rock at the Earth’s surface. Kinetic treatments on the diffusion of heat and matter through crystals and melts will be used to constrain the timing of geological processes. Recommended preparation: Knowledge of mathematics at the level of partial differential equations; mineralogy (EESC 4113); and petrology (EESC 4701); or permission of the instructor

EESC GU4040 CLIM THERMODYN/ENERGY TRANSFER. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: EESC W4008, advanced calculus, and general physics, or the instructor's permission.
Thermodynamics of atmospheric and oceanic processes fundamental to the climate system. Physical mechanisms of vertical energy transfer: surface fluxes, boundary layers and convection

EESC GU4085 GEODYNAMICS. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement
Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: calculus, differential equations, introductory physics.
An introduction to how the Earth and planets work. The focus is on physical processes that control plate tectonics and the evolution of planetary interiors and surfaces; analytical descriptions of these processes; weekly physical model demonstrations

EESC GU4210 GEOPHYSICAL FLUID DYNAMICS. 3.00 points.

Required course for M.A./Ph.D. candidates focusing in physical oceanography and atmospheric sciences. Elective for undergraduate majors in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences.

Prerequisites: APMA E3101, APMA E3201 or equivalents and APPH E4200 or equivalent or the instructor's permission.
Prerequisites: APMA E3101, APMA E3201 or equivalents and APPH E4200 or equivalent or the instructors permission. Fundamental concepts in the dynamics of rotating stratified flows. Geostrophic and hydrostatic balances, potential vorticity, f and beta plane approximations, gravity and Rossby waves, geostrophic adjustment and quasigeostrophy, baroclinic and barotropic instabilities

EESC GU4243 CLIMATE PREDICTION CHALLENGES WITH MACHINE LEARNING. 3.00 points.

This course is a project-based learning (PBL) course where teams of climate science and data science students collaborate to create machine learning predictive models for challenges inspired by ongoing climate data science research. Students from different background will apply their prior knowledge, work together and teach each other in high-paced collaborative projects. Through a sequence of mini-projects, i.e., “challenges”, this course provides students a deeper understanding of using machine learning for climate science and support predictive capabilities. It provides training on a broad set of practical skills for climate data science research (e.g., handling geoscience data formats, data curation, cleaning and transformation, building ML workflow, and collaboration using cloud computing resources, Git and/or GitHub). It will also offer discussions on the opportunities and challenges of using climate science and projections in decision processes. Minimal formal instruction on statistics, data science, machine learning, or climate science will be given. Project cycles run every 4 weeks, where we will have mini-group data projects. Groups will be formed randomly with students from both climate science and data science background. Project products will be peer-reviewed, in addition to evaluation by the instructional team

EESC GU4630 AIR-SEA INTERACTION. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years. Enrollment limited to 20. Priority based on seniority (graduate students, graduating seniors, etc.).

Prerequisites: solid background in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Some background in fluid mechanics (as in EESC W4925/APPH E4200) or the instructors permission. An overview of oceanic and atmospheric boundary layers including fluxes of momentum, heat, mass, (eg. moisture salt) and gases between the ocean and atmosphere; vertical distribution of energy sources and sinks at the interface including the importance of surface currents; forced upper ocean dynamics, the role of surface waves on the air-sea exchange processes and ocean mixed layer processes

EESC GU4924 INTRO TO ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY. 3.00 points.

CC/GS: Partial Fulfillment of Science Requirement

Prerequisites: Physics W1201, Chemistry W1403, Calculus III, or equivalent or the instructor's permission. EESC W2100 preferred.
Prerequisites: Physics W1201, Chemistry W1403, Calculus III, or equivalent or the instructors permission. EESC W2100 preferred. Physical and chemical processes determining atmospheric composition and the implications for climate and regional air pollution. Basics of physical chemistry relevant to the atmosphere: spectroscopy, photolysis, and reaction kinetics. Atmospheric transport of trace gas species. Atmosphere-surface-biosphere interactions. Stratospheric ozone chemistry. Tropospheric hydrocarbon chemistry and oxidizing power. Legacy effects of photochemical smog and acid rain. Current impacts of aerosol pollution and climate impacts of pollution reduction

EESC GU4926 INTRO TO CHEMICAL OCEANOGRAPHY. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: the instructor's permission for students without one year of chemistry. Course open to undergraduates with one year of chemistry. Recommended preparation: a solid background in mathematics, physics, and chemistry.
Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: one year of chemistry. The course covers: Factors controlling the concentration and distribution of dissolved chemical species within the sea; the physical chemistry of seawater; ocean circulation and biogeochemical processes that interact with each other to influence the distribution and fate of elements in the ocean. The course examines in some detail the two-way interaction between marine ecosystems and their chemical environment, and the implications of these interactions for distributions in the ocean of carbon, nutrients and trace metals. Although this course does not cover specific strategies that have been proposed for marine Carbon Dioxide Removal (mCDR) and ocean storage of carbon, it will cover the basic processes and principles underlying ocean mCDR strategies

EESC GU4937 CENOZOIC PALEOCEANOGRAPHY. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years. Enrollment limited to 20 students EESC (DEES) graduate students have priority..

Prerequisites: college-level geology helpful but not required.
Prerequisites: college-level geology helpful but not required. Introduces the physical, chemical and biological processes that govern how and where ocean sediments accumulate. Major topics addressed are: modes of biogenic, terrigenous and authigenic sedimentation, depositional environments, pore fluids and sediment geochemistry, diagenesis, as well as biostratigraphy and sediment stratigraphic principles and methods. Second half of the semester focuses on major events in Cenozoic paleoceanogrpahy and paleoclimatology including orbital control of climate, long-term carbon cycle, extreme climate regimes, causes of ice ages in Earths history, human evolution, El Niño evolution, and long-term sea level history

EESC GR6400 COMMUNICATING EARTH ＆ ENVIR SCI. 3.00 points.

Communicating science well in the context of the earth and environmental sciences is critical. This science communication course will transect specific earth and environmental science disciplines to provide a foundational understanding of what it means to communicate science and how to do so effectively. Within this overarching theme of science communication, students will gain a comprehensive and holistic understanding of how to communicate earth and environmental science across a variety of formats and to a diversity of audiences. Practical outcomes include but are not limited to students learning 1) how to rationalize a research topic, 2) write a hypothesis driven proposal, 3) evaluate proposals, 4) produce clear and compelling graphics, 5) adopt the latest pedagogical approaches, and 6) present science findings to a diversity of audiences

EESC GR6920 DYNAMICS OF CLIMATE. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years.

Prerequisites: EESC W4008, and advanced calculus, or the instructor's permission.
Prerequisites: EESC GU4008, and advanced calculus, or the instructors permission. The current climate and its variations over Earth history are interpreted as consequences of fundamental physical processes, including radiative transfer, the atmosphere and ocean circulation, and the carbon cycle. Perturbations to climate, resulting from changing atmospheric composition or insolation, are examined using a combination of simple interpretative models and full Earth System Models

EESC GR6949 ADVANCED SEISMOLOGY I. 3.00 points.

Given in alternate years.Not offered during 2024-2025 academic year.

Prerequisites: a solid background in geophysics, and a knowledge of complex variables.
Seismic waves in layered media, matrix methods, free vibrations of the Earth, dislocation theory, source mechanics

EESC GR9701 SEMINAR IN ADVANCED PETROLOGY. 1.00-2.00 points.

Not offered during 2024-2025 academic year.

In this seminar, we will explore the interactions between volcanism and climate. From week to week, we will discuss research related to the volcano-climate interactions and address questions such as: How do volcanoes affect global climate? How do we reconstruct the climate impact of past volcanic events? How and why are mass extinction events related to supervolcano and flood basalt eruptions? Can long term changes in climate affect volcanism? The course welcomes participation from students with diverse academic backgrounds, reflecting the inherently interdisciplinary nature of the topic, which spans volcanology, atmospheric science, paleoclimatology, geophysics, and more. The seminar will also be open to the broader Lamont community, welcoming drop-ins from all staff, postdocs and students