Message from the Chair

This is a very exciting time in geosciences both here at Auburn and throughout the world. We have the chance to address some of the most challenging issues confronting our society today: energy, water, climate, and environment. Regionally and globally, we have seen substantial consequences on shortage of water, energy, minerals and other natural resources, largely driven by climate and environmental change. Our faculty have developed a suite of courses and curriculum that meet high demand from many parts of the campus and conduct externally-funded, cutting-edge research with collaborators. In the Department of Geosciences, we provide real-world field experience and learning laboratories where students can gain knowledge, better preparing them to compete in the marketplace and make meaningful contributions.

Geosciences faculty offer a diverse portfolio of specialties, we particularly focus on:

• Environmental Geosciences – Climate/Hydrogeology/Environmental Geochemistry/Water Resources/Natural Hazards
• Solid-Earth Processes and Dynamics – Petrology/Geochemistry/Structural Geology/Tectonics/Geophysics
• Earth and Life Through Time – Sedimentology/Paleobiology/Geomicrobiology
• Natural Resources Exploration – Energy/Minerals/Engineering Geology 
• Geospatial Sciences and Geoinformatics – GIS/Remote Sensing/Data Science

The department just launched a new PhD program in Earth System Science, as an interdisciplinary field at the intersection of Earth’s dynamic processes and humans.  The program, which started in Fall 2018, has engaged faculty from five colleges and more than 10 departments to train the next generation earth and environmental scientists.

Please use our website to explore what we do in the Geosciences Department. It is my pleasure to welcome all of you and hope to see you on the Plains.

War Eagle!
Dr. Ming-Kuo Lee, Chair