Overview of the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences Raymond E. Arvidson, Chair The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University is one of the few departments in the country with an integrated program of instruction and research that treats Earth as a planet and makes direct use of knowledge gained by exploring the solar system. Specific areas of emphasis include geology, geodynamics, evolution of the continental crust, fluid-rock interactions, and planetary sciences.
Environmental geochemistry is a major component of the fluid-rock emphasis.
Field work, laboratory measurements, data analysis, and theoretical work are integral components of the research efforts carried out within the Department. The Department offers undergraduate and graduate programs leading to bachelors, masters, and doctoral degrees. At the graduate level, students with undergraduate backgrounds in earth sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and engineering are encouraged to apply. Undergraduate students are also urged to study in these fields as part of the major in earth sciences. The Department benefits from the presence of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences , the Geosciences Node of the NASA Planetary Data System , extensive laboratory equipment and computer facilities, and a departmental library with more than 50,000 monographs, journals, and maps.