The specialization in
Environmental and Geological Sciences
offers research opportunities in a broad
spectrum of Earth-focused science reflecting
the research interests of the faculty
– including topics of classical Geology;
studies of Earth’s fluid envelopes; and
applying combinations of geology, biology,
chemistry, and physics to studying Earth’s
diverse environments and their ecosystems.
These are grouped into four mutually-supportive
areas within which faculty expertise and
state-of-the-art instrumentation support
exciting scientific investigations: Atmospheric
and Hydrologic Sciences; Terrestrial,
Estuarine, and Marine Studies; Earth
Materials and Earth Processes; and
Urban Environments
and Public Health. Modern research
in Environmental and Geological Sciences
commonly crosses the boundaries between
these areas, e.g. isotope geochemists
and biostratigraphers work with sedimentologists
and climatologists to analyze paleoclimates
over tens of millions of years; bedrock
geologists work with geochemists and hydrogeologists
to understand arsenic concentration in
groundwater drinking supplies. Our program
is designed to emphasize such linkages.
A full range of research facilities is
available within CUNY, and in addition,
students may work at organizations and
institutions, such as Brookhaven National
Laboratory, the American Museum of Natural
History, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory,
with which our faculty are affiliated.
