Department: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Contacts

Office: Geology Corner/Braun Hall, Building 320, Room 118
Mail Code: 94305-2115
Phone: (650) 723-0848
Web Site: http://earth.stanford.edu/gs

Courses offered by the Department of Geological Sciences are listed under the subject code GEOLSCI on the Stanford Bulletin's ExploreCourses web site.

The geological sciences include the study of Earth materials and processes and how those materials and processes have changed over the planet's 4.56-billion-year history and vary across other planets. More specifically, courses and research within the department address: the chemical and physical makeup and properties of minerals, rocks, soils, sediments, and water; the formation and evolution of Earth and other planets; the processes that shape planetary surfaces and interiors; the stratigraphic, paleobiological, and geochemical records of Earth history including changes in climate, oceans, and atmosphere; the observation and robotic exploration of other planets; present-day, historical, and long-term feedbacks between the geosphere and biosphere; and the origin and occurrence of our natural resources.

Besides the fundamental nature of research performed within the department, it has critical implications for the study and remediation of natural hazards (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and floods); environmental and geological engineering; surface and groundwater management; the assessment, exploration, and extraction of energy, mineral and water resources; ecology and conservation biology; remediation of contaminated water and soil; geological mapping and land use planning; sustainability; human health and the environment; and space exploration.

Faculty

Emeriti: (Professors) Dennis K. Bird, Gordon E. Brown, W. Gary Ernst, James C. Ingle, Jr., Juhn G. Liou, Gail A. Mahood, Jonathan F. Stebbins, David D. Pollard

Chair: C. Kevin Boyce

Associate Chair for Diversity and Inclusion: Jef Caers

Director of Graduate Studies: Wendy Mao

Director of Undergraduate Studies: George Hilley

Professors: C. Kevin Boyce, Jef Caers, Page Chamberlain, Rodney C. Ewing, Stephan A. Graham, George Hilley, Donald R. Lowe, Wendy Mao, Elizabeth L. Miller, Jonathan Payne, Tiziana Vanorio

Associate Professors: Jane Willenbring

Assistant Professors: Mathieu Lapôtre, Andrew Leslie, Ayla Pamukcu, Laura Schaefer, Erik Sperling

Professors (Research): Martin J. Grove

Courtesy Professors: Elizabeth Hadly, Simon L. Klemperer, Kate Maher, Tapan Mukerji, Sonia Tikoo