Geology and Geophysics
Tectonics
EAPS faculty and students in tectonics study how the Earth has evolved over billions of years, integrating observations from the building and breaking of mountain ranges to the rise and filling of ocean basins, with an eye to their impact on the evolution of life.
Geophysics
Our geophysics faculty and students quantify the forces that currently shape the surface of our planet, from plate tectonics to mountain building, and the strength of the crust and mantle, from cold rocks that break as earthquakes to warm rocks that flow.
Geomorphology
Select EAPS faculty and students focus their research on the study of the origin and evolution of landscapes created by physical and chemical processes including tectonics, the flow of water and ice, and climate change.
Energy
Research in the traditional and unconventional energy thematic areas are conducted by our faculty and students, including the study of the exploration of reservoirs, the sedimentological and structural characterization of wells, and fluid/rock interactions.
Geology and Geophysics News
Margaret Deahn awarded Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship
07-01-2024
Margaret Deahn says she could have never imagined as a child that she would grow up to study rocks on other planets. But now she has three internships at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) and an education in planetary sciences with Purdue University on her growing list of accomplishments. Now she can add Amelia Earhart Fellow to that list. She is one of only 30 scientists worldwide receiving a 2024 Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship. Deahn is a PhD student with Purdue University’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS).
Stephanie Menten awarded Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship
07-01-2024
During a recent trip to Iceland, Stephanie Menten received an email announcing that she is one of only 30 scientists worldwide receiving a 2024 Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship. Menten, a PhD Student with Purdue University’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS), studies the geophysics of icy moons in our outer solar system. Particularly, she studies processes such as cryovolcanism, volatile transport, and internal convection.
Mystery Hole Found on Mars Could Be Future Astronaut Home
06-14-2024
NEWSWEEK — A mysterious pit on Mars, captured by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), has reignited interest in the potential of these features to support future human missions to the Red Planet. Prof. Brandon Johnson, of Purdue EAPS, discusses this mysterious Martian hole.
What lies beneath: Mars’ subsurface ice could be a key to sustaining future habitats on other planets
06-04-2024
PURDUE NEWS — To survive on other planets, water is, of course, critical. We need it to drink, sustain crops and even create rocket fuel. But on spaceflights, checked luggage is exorbitantly expensive. Anything heavy, especially liquids like water, is bulky and costly to haul by rocket, even to our closest interplanetary neighbors. The best plan, then, is to find water at the spacecraft’s destination. Purdue University planetary scientist Ali Bramson’s research is laying the foundation for future extraterrestrial exploration. She is focused on finding ice deposits beneath the barren surfaces of the moon and Mars, providing a buried resource important for future human habitats and even space travel itself. Subsurface ice also is a compelling target for astrobiology, climatology and geology research.
Are volcanic depressions on the Moon a fountain of youth?
05-17-2024
Some volcanic areas on the Moon have a youthful appearance. These areas are known as Irregular Mare Patches, (pronounced MAHR-ay), or IMPs, and are considered youthful-looking in that, by appearance alone, look as though they were formed over a billion years after the Moon is thought to have stopped having volcanic eruptions. It’s a puzzle that lunar scientists have tried to resolve since their discovery and has major implications for the Moon’s evolution. Researchers at Purdue University recently published their findings on the composition of these IMPs and how they have managed to hide the proverbial fine lines and wrinkles. Hunter Vannier, PhD Candidate at Purdue University, is the lead author of the study published in AGU’s JGR Planets.