Geosciences

Small classes and labs, inspired teaching by active research scientists and cutting-edge research opportunities distinguish the geosciences major at Union.

We are a research-active department that believes strongly in getting students immersed in the field and the lab through classes and research experiences. Each faculty member cares deeply about their teaching, research and involvement with students. Faculty specialties include paleoclimate, hydrology, volcanology, limnology, stable isotope geochemistry, zircon geochronology, sclerochronology, igneous and metamorphic petrology and dendrochronology.

Students have access to world-class instrumentation in their courses and in independent, faculty-supervised research projects. Our equipment includes an isotope-ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS), laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometer (LA ICP-MS), scanning electron microscope (SEM), x-ray diffractometer (XRD), ion chromatographs and Raman spectrometer.

As part of their coursework, students study the petrology and structure of the Adirondacks and Green Mountains and the biogeochemistry of Panama. During the summer months, our research horizons broaden to cover the globe. Department field trips have included excursions to Dominica, Barbados, Costa Rica and Montserrat. We also have had long-running research projects in Alaska, the Peruvian and Ecuadorian Andes, and the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. A winter break mini-term in New Zealand focuses on electric power development and environmental management, with students working in multi-disciplinary teams and meeting with everyone from public officials and power plant operators to farmers, foresters and representatives of the indigenous Maori.

Students are actively engaged with faculty on their research projects and many students are co-authors on papers that are published in scientific journals. Our students annually present their research at regional, national and international professional conferences, including the Geological Society of America and American Geophysical Meetings, as well as the college Steinmetz Symposium. In addition to the research experiences at Union, students have summer research opportunities through the Keck Geology Consortium, a multi-college collaboration that has supported students research around the world. For more than a decade, Union has co-hosted the Mohawk Watershed Symposium, which features scientists, policymakers, local citizens and students.