Earth and Environmental Sciences at Rensselaer

In recent decades, the Earth Sciences have undergone major changes, stimulated in part by the reinterpretation of Earth history and improved understanding of the processes that modulate modern and ancient environments.  The past 15 years have been especially exciting, as the interconnectedness among all Earth systems — air, water, solid Earth, and the biosphere — has come into sharper focus. Cognizant of these changes (and leading some of them), Rensselaer's Earth and Environmental Sciences faculty provide instruction in modern Earth Sciences that is both far-reaching and relevant, addressing key topics ranging from environmental contaminants in local waterways, Earth's long-term climate history, to the conditions on ancient Earth that gave rise to life.

 

Announcement: The Earth and Environmental Sciences Department is seeking graduate student applications. We have a rich geology, environmental science, and astrobiology program, as well as data science and geoinformatics. Applications submitted after the RPI deadline will still be considered - Follow this link to apply:  https://admissions.rpi.edu/graduate/masters-and-phd-applicants

  • Program Spotlight

    Ph.D. in Geology

    Conduct independent geoscience research with accomplished faculty to unveil exciting new findings in Earth Science.

  • Program Spotlight

    M.S. in Geology

    Learn analytical problem-solving skills using cutting-edge research approaches and technologies.

  • Program Spotlight

    B.S. in Environmental Science

    Use an interdisciplinary approach to address environmental challenges in a changing world.

  • Program Spotlight

    B.S. in Geology

    Learn about the interconnectedness and changing of Earth systems through time using state-of-the-art techniques.

  • Program Spotlight

    B.S. in Hydrogeology

    Understand the natural and human-designed interplay between water, soil, and rocks at the Earth’s surface.

Announcements

The Office of Undergraduate Education and the Teaching and Learning Collaboratory (TLC) are excited to announce the 2023 fellows awarded for the Innovative Pedagogy Fellowship Call.

The Earth and Environmental Sciences Department is seeking graduate student applications. We have a rich geology, environmental science, and astrobiology program, as well as data science and geoinformatics. Applications submitted after the RPI deadline will still be considered - Follow this link to apply:  https://admissions.rpi.edu/graduate/masters-and-phd-applicants

News

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute doctoral student Riley Barton has been selected as one of 87 outstanding graduate students in the United States by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program (SCGSR).

A few years ago, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Sasha Wagner, assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences, proved false what scientists had thought for years. Soot-like molecules that formed an ancient carbon pool deep in the Pacific Ocean did not, in fact, originate from wildfires on land.

About 201 million years ago, volcanic eruptions covered an area roughly the size of South America in lava as Pangaea started to split. The Earth was changed. In the years that followed, 40% of all four-legged land animals were wiped out in the End Triassic Extinction (ETE). The exact cause was unknown.

Contact Information

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Jonsson-Rowland Science Center, 1W19
110 8th Street
Troy, NY 12180