Environmental Geoscience
Hydrology and Ecohydrology
Studying how groundwater responds to the effects of climate and landscape change and how these perturbations propagate through aquifers impacting surface water ecosystems is an important focus of our faculty.
Environmental Chemistry
Studying the chemical processes that couple the lithosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and atmosphere, and their impacts on human activities and the environment, is the focus of select EAPS faculty and students.
Soils and Sediments
The weathering and erosion of soils, and how these processes support and change life on Earth, is a key research theme for our environmental geoscience faculty.
Environmental Biogeochemistry
Environmental geoscience faculty and students conduct various experiments that help further the study of the chemical, physical, geological, and biological processes and reactions that govern the composition of the natural environment.
Environmental Geoscience News
Purdue seismologists use new technique to determine activity below the surface of an Alaskan volcano
09-20-2024
WEST LAFAYETTE — Great Sitkin, a volcano located in Alaska, is helping researchers better understand the property changes beneath the surface during the eruption. Xiaotao Yang, assistant professor with Purdue EAPS, and recent MS graduate Cody Kupres used an emerging new technique using the seismic energy produced by ocean waves to measure subtle changes in the velocity of seismic waves propagating across the volcano below each seismic station on the island. They published their findings in The American Geophysical Union’s Geophysical Research Letters.
Debjani Singh: Channeling a river of data for clean energy, sustainability
09-11-2024
ALUMNI NEWS — Like the hundreds of rivers and streams she and her team have rendered in exquisite detail, Debjani Singh’s career has taken some twists and turns. Singh is a senior scientist at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory with expertise in water resources, data science and earth science, a combination that makes her uniquely suited to lead the HydroSource project, where she applies data science to solve complex water resource management issues. Singh’s goal is to bridge the gap between the world of research and practical application by giving the data life beyond the traditional confines of scientific inquiry. Singh is an alumna of Purdue EAPS.
Storm Chasing: The Science of Tornadoes
09-04-2024
NEWSTALK — Robin Tanamachi, Associate Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University, joined host Jonathan McCrea on the FutureProof Podcast to discuss storm chasing and the science of tornadoes.
Why twisters target the United States
09-04-2024
PNAS SCIENCE SESSIONS PODCAST — The Midwestern United States experiences so many tornadoes every year that the region is nicknamed “Tornado Alley.” No other region on Earth comes close in the number of annual tornadoes. So, what’s unique about Tornado Alley? Funing Li and Dan Chavas, of Purdue EAPS, explain why North America produces many tornadoes each year, whereas South America does not.
The Great Salt Lake Is Still Drying Up. Will It Affect Your Health? Yes.
08-30-2024
OUTSIDE — New research found that the Great Salt Lake’s drying lakebed emits tons of greenhouse gasses, threatening the health of those in Utah and beyond. Greenhouse gas emissions are “not directly harmful to health,” says Lisa Welp, associate professor of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University, "but they contribute to climate change, which indirectly affects people worldwide."