G r a d u a t e S t u d i e s i n

Earth & PlanetarySciences

http://epsc.wustl.edu

The Department of Earth & Planetary Sciencesat Washington University in St. Louis 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. As a student you will have the opportunity

to explore the many areas covered within the Department such as geology,

geochemistry, geophysics, geobiology, and planetary sciences. You will

participate in research that involves laboratory measurements, data analy-

sis, theoretical approaches, and fieldwork at various locations around the

world. The Department offers undergraduate and graduate programs lead-

ing to bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. At the graduate level,

we encourage students with undergraduate backgrounds in earth sciences,

chemistry, physics, mathematics, and engineering to apply.

Earth & Planetary Sciences

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On the cover (from left to right): students on a shipa safe distance away from the erupting Anatahanvolcano in the Mariana Island Arc; former graduatestudent Jenny Lippmann spelunking in an overhangcave in western St. Louis County, Missouri, one ofseveral caves developed near the contact betweenthe Bushberg sandstone and the underlyingKimmswick limestone; graduate student CynthiaFadem using a blowtorch to seal off a pyrex sampletube containing CO2 gas (carbon from soil organicmatter) for δ13C analysis.

Graduate students use aportable system to deter-mine spectral reflectance of“unknown” rock samplesas part of a graduatecourse in remote sensing.

Introduction

Why Earth & Planetary Sciences?It is an exciting time to do research in earth and planetarysciences. The need for top-notch undergraduates withbackgrounds in earth sciences, chemistry, physics, biology,mathematics, and engineering to enter our field has neverbeen greater. Our field is changing rapidly and becomingmore interdisciplinary as links emerge among geology,geochemistry, geophysics, and geobiology. New opportuni-ties are developing as research in natural hazards, energysources, and the environment become more important tothe global economy, and new space missions are developedto explore the solar system. Understanding our planetthrough research and discovery is vital to our survival andthe development of sustainable ways of interacting withthe Earth.

Why Washington University?Washington University is a leading medium-sized researchuniversity located within the vibrant and historic city of St. Louis. The city has the major cultural attractions of alarge metropolitan area, yet still retains the friendlinessand low cost of smaller cities. The University is renowned

for its excellence in the sciences, both at the undergraduateand graduate levels. Students come here from all aroundthe country and the world to pursue their research andeducational aspirations. The peers you will meet here atWashington University will join you in being the scientificleaders of the future.

The Graduate Student Experience

Artist’s conception of NASA’s Mars ExplorationRover. The two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity,have traveled many kilometers across the redplanet and found rocks that were produced inor modified in aqueous environments. These discoveries suggest that the planet was oncehabitable for the development of life.

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Introduction

What does our department have to offer?The Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences atWashington University is the smallest nationally rankeddepartment in earth sciences, geophysics, and geochemistry(U.S. News and World Report, 2006). The relatively smallsize engenders a friendly and personal place, offering a lotof personal interaction with faculty and researchers. Ourgraduate students have the opportunity to use cutting-edgelaboratory equipment, high-speed parallel computers, andthe latest planetary mission data in the course of theirresearch. They travel to field sites around the world andpublish research in the leading scientific journals. Ourgraduates go on to carry out research and teaching atmajor educational and research institutions and are leadersin earth and planetary sciences.

Numerical simulations of a giant hot upwelling(“superplume”) on early Mars. This superplumeis believed to be responsible for the formation ofthe Martian crustal dichotomy. The colors repre-sent the temperature (red is hot, blue is cold).

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Geology

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Geological research within the Department ofEarth & Planetary Sciences is broadly based andincludes the study of planetary surfaces. Students exam-ine the interactions of humans and their environmentsusing a combination of geological and archaeologicalapproaches, field-based and laboratory analyses ofigneous and metamorphic rocks ranging in age from theearliest Precambrian to the Holocene, tectonic reconstruc-tions based on field mapping and precision radiometricdating of key events, and detailed studies of mineraliza-tion processes of relevance to biological and environmen-tal systems. This broad-based approach ensures that a range of disciplines is covered within the geological sciences while still providing a focus on field-based andlaboratory-based analyses relevant to understanding thegeological evolution of Earth and its neighbors, includingthe interaction of humans and the environment.

Geology Program

A group examines a terrace outcrop andsearches for biosignatures during a field trip tothe Rio Tinto fluvial system in Spain. The RioTinto is an acid-sulfate aqueous system, per-haps analogous to the surface of Mars, thatproduces evaporative sulfates that are convert-ed to goethite and hematite as the deposits areuplifted to become part of the terrace record.

Geology

Geologic ResearchBiomineralization andEnvironmental MineralogyOur Raman spectroscopy and applied mineralogy groupexplores the characteristics that define those minerals thatare formed biologically, e.g., how is bone apatite chemical-ly different from geological apatite and what are the bio-logical advantages of those differences? Our collaborativeresearch involves the synthesis and characterization ofapatite with chemical and structural properties that mimicthose of bone (thereby revealing the conditions necessaryto stabilize this biomineral). This knowledge is applied tothe use of nanocrystalline apatite for the remediation ofheavy metals and to increase our understanding of howbiominerals (and their chemical/isotopic signatures) arepreserved through fossilization.

PaleoenvironmentalReconstructionThis branch of geology is strongly interdisciplinary andincorporates aspects of petrology, pedology, archaeology,sedimentology, geography, geophysics, and geochemistry.Paleoenvironmental reconstruction informs us of past climates and helps contextualize human occupation. Forexample, how could climatic processes have impactedhuman migration out of Africa or the origins of Europeanagriculture? Recent field-based investigations in theUnited States, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Croatia have includedarchaeological surveying, geologic and topographic map-ping, microstratigraphy, and soil description. Sediment andsoil proxy records are examined in the laboratory usingstable isotope analysis, bulk chemistry, granulometry, min-eralogy, and trace and major elemental analyses.

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Left: Fieldwork conducted in the Ka’u Desert, Hawaii, on a pahoehoe lava flow.

Right: A student uses a laser Ramanmicroprobe to analyze a mineral in thin-section.The green laser light is focused by the samemicroscope objective used to view the sample.

Continental EvolutionThe Continental Evolution Research Group focuses onPrecambrian geology and crustal evolution to improve ourunderstanding of the processes by which the continentalcrust has separated from the mantle, the processes thathave affected the chemical maturation of the crust, and theprocesses by which the crust has aggregated to form conti-nents. The current studies range from geological mappingof orogenic belts worldwide, predominantly in Africa,Canada, and the United States, to sophisticated state-of-the-art laboratory studies of minerals and rocks using X-ray diffraction, electron microprobe, and thermal ionizationmass spectrometer instrumentation. A crucial part of allthese studies is the integration of petrology, geochemistry,geochronology, and structural geology combined withfield-based studies to constrain the cause, form, and timingof deformation, magmatism, and metamorphism of theareas of interest.

Geochemistry

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The cosmos is made of the standard 92 chemicalelements (plus a few more that, on Earth, are no longeraround) that came to exist with basically no regard for theirchemical properties. Yet most of what has happened to them

since, in the parts of the universe we inhabit, has been dictated by chemistry. Geochemistry is thestudy of what natural materials aremade of, how they got that way, andwhere they came from. There aremany disciplines you may choosefrom within geochemistry. Importantissues include when and how the

solar system and its planets formed; how the Earth has differentiated into distinct reservoirs like its core, mantle,atmosphere, oceans, and the rocks beneath your feet; howthe water you drink gets to you; and how vital resourceslike soils and ores formed. Geochemistry also includes thetechniques for figuring out when natural events occurredand is a major aspect of understanding crucial environmen-tal issues such as the effects of civilization on the Earth andglobal climate change.

Geochemical research involves sophisticated analyticalinstrumentation. As a graduate student working in geochemistry, you will have access to our extensiveinstrumental facilities as well as those in other depart-ments and other institutions with which we collaborate.The research also involves studying the right samples,and students can work with materials from our own backyards (literally) as well as from around the world. Andfrom off the world as well: the study of extraterrestrialmaterials—Apollo lunar samples and meteorites that sam-ple asteroids, comets, the Moon, and Mars—is an impor-tant facet of our research.

Geochemistry ResearchGeochronologyOne of the key issues in understanding natural materialsand processes is usually asking when something hap-pened. Often the main approach to answering this ques-tion is geochemistry, the study of the proportions of dif-ferent isotopes of elements like Pb, Sr, Nd, and a handful

of others, which are affected by the radioactive decay ofnaturally occurring elements through time. This researchgenerally involves careful laboratory processing of thesamples and mass spectrometers to make the measure-ments. Topics pursued in our program prominentlyinclude the overall tectonic history of the Earth and the formation of planetary bodies.

The Early Solar SystemConditions in the early solar system were different fromwhat they are now, and there were many one-time eventsand processes. Much of the study of star and planet forma-tion is geochemistry, and is supported by examination ofmeteorites and lunar samples, including materials returnedto Earth by spacecraft missions. Some of this work involvesgeochronology; some of it involves characterizing pre-

Aine Steiner extracts carbon dioxide from acave air sample as Professor Bob Criss looks on.

Geochemistry Program

Geochemistry

served materials that formed in stellar atmospheres orinterstellar space before there even was a solar system.Some of the most sophisticated analytical instrumentationin the world is used to illuminate the processes of star andplanet formation.

Stable IsotopesVariations in the relative proportions of the isotopes ofvarious elements can arise in chemical as well as nuclearprocesses. Familiar everyday phenomena like rain, or thegrowth of biological tissue by extraction of carbon fromthe air, are among the most prominent sources of isotopicvariation. In its isotopic proportions water records its histo-ry and where it came from, information that is crucial tounderstanding issues ranging from securing our water sup-plies to catastrophic floods. Stable isotope research is cen-tral in studying crucial issues from environmental pollutionto potential climate change.

Planetary ChemistryIn fundamental ways, Earth, Venus, and Mars are verysimilar to each other. Why did they turn out so differentlyin ways that are so important to us? What might otherplanets, in our own solar system or around other stars, be like? Does it rain on Titan? These questions are part of planetary chemistry, which may be thought of as geo-chemistry with different boundary conditions. Research in planetary chemistry is partly theoretical but alsoinvolves a substantial amount of laboratory work todetermine how planetary materials will behave under thedifferent environmental conditions of other worlds, oreven our own world at different times.

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Two generations of olivine crystals within a glassclast in feldspathic lunar meteorite PecoraEscarpment 02007.

“I was drawn to the Departmentof Earth & Planetary Sciences at Washington University by theexpertise of the faculty, the plentiful avenuesfor field experience, and the options for work-ing in a variety of geochemistry laboratories.

Both field and labo-ratory work are cornerstones in mycareer, and thesefacets of my workwere developed via the opportunitiesI was given atWashington Uni-versity. In addition to my educationthrough course work

and research projects in my first two years inthe program, I was trained to develop and coor-dinate field expeditions to exciting hydrother-mal systems, to work closely with undergradu-ate students in the lab, and to communicatewith scientists not familiar with my academicfield. These qualities of organization, communi-cation, and mentorship are what have made mecompetitive in the job market, and have aidedme in forging important collaborations with scientists in other disciplines. The E&PSdepartment was a close-knit and supportivegroup, and interactions with faculty and otherstudents helped to foster a sense of communitythat I very much appreciated.”

D’Arcy Meyer-Dombard, BA 98, MA 00, PhD 04

Assistant Professor, University of Illinois atChicago (Earth and Environmental Sciences)

Geophysics

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How do planets work? How do terrestrial planets formand evolve over time? Why do plate tectonics occur only on the Earth and nowhere else in the Solar System? Howdo Earth’s plates move and interact? What happens to the subducted plates? What causes earthquakes and vol-canoes? Are hotspots on earth and other planets caused by

thermal plumes rising from the core-mantle boundary? These are the kinds of questions you willencounter as a student doingresearch in our geophysics program.Much of the geophysical research wedo addresses the structure, composi-tion, and dynamics of the Earth,

because this is where most of our data are. Other parts ofour geophysics program probe the planetary dynamics ofMars, Venus, and other terrestrial bodies.

As a geophysics student, you will have access to a widevariety of opportunities in both data analysis and model-ing. Students in seismology can travel to places such asAfrica, Antarctica, South America, and the Pacific Islandsto obtain new data for their research. For research in plan-etary science, you will have complete access to the mostrecent satellite data sets from all of NASA’s space missions.Our geophysics program also has advanced computer soft-ware for analyzing geophysical data, as well as excellentcomputational facilities, including a multiprocessorBEOWULF cluster. Students in mineral physics utilize astate-of-the-art laboratory to probe heat flow in planetsand planetary materials.

Geophysics ResearchEarth StructureOur seismology group uses seismic waves to make three-dimensional images of Earth’s interior. These 3-D picturesof Earth’s crust, mantle, and core provide constraints onthe temperature, composition, and flow pattern of regionsof the Earth that are too deep for us to examine any otherway. One area of focus is the nature of subduction zonesand volcanic arcs, where seafloor is consumed back intothe mantle. Another area of focus is the unusual boundarybetween the solid rock of the mantle and the liquid iron ofthe outer core. We use several aspects of seismic waves,

including P and S velocity, attenuation (energy absorption),and anisotropy (directional variation in velocity) to inferthe properties of the earth’s interior.

Planetary DynamicsOur planetary modeling group uses theoretical methods aswell as high-performance computing to investigate interiordynamics of the Earth and other planets. Examples includemelting and planetary differentiation triggered by earlygiant impacts, planetary-scale superplumes that may havecaused the Martian asymmetry, and global volcanic resur-facing of Venus about one billion years ago.

Planetary Gravity and MagnetismRecent planetary probes to Mars and Venus provide essen-tial gravity and magnetics data for understanding funda-mental aspects of the formation and evolution of theseplanets. Our planetary geophysics group has been a leaderin using potential field data as well as photographs andradar images in order to discover the surface age, resurfac-ing history, volcanic activity, tectonic evolution, and massanomaly structure of Mars and Venus.

Geophysics Program

Four slices through the first whole-mantle 3-D seismicattenuation tomography model, done by former graduatestudent Jesse Fisher Lawrence. The blue regions corre-spond to the cold Pacific Ocean seafloor subductingbeneath western Asia. The red regions are possiblywater-enriched rock, in which the water was pumpedinto the lower mantle by subduction.

Geophysics

Mineral PhysicsBoth laboratory methods and theory are used to constrainthe physical properties of earth and planetary materials.The mineral physics facility is unique and centered onmeasurements of thermal diffusivity. Light is used to probe microscopic behavior of solids held within diamondanvil cells at extreme pressures and temperatures, and to provide information on phenomena such as mantlephase transformations.

SeismicSources—Earthquakes,Volcanoes,and GlaciersMany different earthprocesses can be moni-tored and studied bysensing radiated seismicwaves. The brittle

behavior of rocks within Earth is examined through thedetection and analysis of earthquakes, including the enig-ma of earthquakes that occur at great depth where pressureshould prevent frictional sliding. Seismic events associatedwith volcanoes, glacier movement, and hydrothermal circu-lation provide important new insights into these processes.

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Washington University researcher RigobertTibi installs a broadband seismic station inCameroon, West Africa, to study mantledynamics associated with volcanism along the Cameroon Volcanic Line.

“I was fortunate to have enteredthe Washington University Earth& Planetary Sciences depart-ment near the beginning of anexciting project, the SeismicExperiment in Patagonia andAntarctica. Not only did I have the oppor-tunity to participate in three fascinating fieldseasons down south, but I was able to work

with an entirelynew data set thatwas full of newinformation. I usedthis data set forseveral very differ-ent projects, includ-ing waveform inver-sion, subductionzone seismicity, anda study of phasevelocities. I really

appreciated the breadth and variety of theresearch to which I was exposed, and I hadmany opportunities to collaborate with otherscientists. After graduation I chose a careervery different from earthquake seismology, butthe regional geology experience and the skills Iacquired in graduate school have played animportant role in my current position; I have aunique perspective that has proven effectivefor addressing the scientific questions of thepetroleum industry.”

Stacey Robertson Maurice, MA 99, PhD 03

Senior Petroleum GeologistExxonMobil Exploration Company

Planetary Studies

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Exploration of the solar system is among the mostexciting scientific enterprises of the past several decades.Earth’s moon is now thought to have been formed by thereassembly of debris created during a massive impact eventassociated with accretion of the Earth. Mars is known tohave had a complicated climatic history that involved bothsurface and subsurface water. Venus may preserve its sur-face for hundreds of millions of years before catastrophi-cally turning over the lithosphere as interior heat builds upto the point of massive internal convection within themantle. The icy moons in the outer solar system exhibit afascinating array of processes, including active volcanism(Io), subsurface oceans (Europa), and surfaces with anabundance of organic compounds (Titan). Our faculty, staff,and students have been deeply involved in many of thekey NASA missions and spacecraft that have explored oursolar system, together with in-depth analyses of the datafrom these missions. We seek to understand the origin andevolution of the solar system and bodies within it from asystems perspective, using fundamental measurements ofextraterrestrial materials, laboratory-based work, and theo-retical calculations.

Understanding the internal structure and evolution of thesolid planets and satellites is approached through analysesof gravity and magnetic fields, topographic measurements,and radar sounding in conjunction with powerful numeri-cal techniques. Planetary surface studies integrate remotesensing from orbital and landed platforms with other datato understand the geological evolution of moons and plan-ets and implications for habitability (e.g., Mars).

Cosmochemistry research focuses in part on lunar samplescollected during the Apollo Missions, lunar meteorites,martian meteorites, meteorites with asteroidal sources, andstardust. These data, laboratory-based experiments, andtheoretical calculations provide insight into earliest solarsystem history and dynamics, including the precursormaterials (i.e., stardust) preserved during these events.

The Department is also home to the Geosciences Node of the Planetary Data System, an archive of data from planetary NASA and international missions (http://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu). Further, the internationalwork with space partners from Europe, Japan, India, andChina allows students a unique opportunity to collaboratewith researchers from other countries.

Planetary Studies

The Spirit Mars Rover acquired thiscolor panorama, called the McMurdoPan, from its winter haven location.

Moons of Jupiter: This montage shows, left toright, Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, asimaged by the New Horizons spacecraft inFebruary 2007, during its flyby of Jupiter.

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Geobiology

The vast diversity of life on Earth is the result ofseveral billion years of co-evolution with geologic process-es. For most of Earth history, the geochemical cycles thatoperate within the crust have been driven, in one way or another, by microorganisms. Changes in atmosphericcomposition, ocean chemistry, and continental weatheringrates are only some of the most obvious signs of ubiqui-tous microbial activity. More recently, plants and animals,including humans, have also dramatically affected nearlyevery terrestrial environment. Geobiology at WashingtonUniversity is a broadly crosscutting research program that

includes investigations of hydrothermal ecosystems, theorigin and early evolution of life, the subsurface biosphere,paleoenvironmental reconstruction, geoarchaeology, bio-mineralization, and astrobiology.Much of our work relates to bacteriaand archaea, which are geochemicalagents of the first magnitude—theythrive in ice and thermal springs, inacid and base, in desert sands, in thedeepest oceans, and several kilome-ters down in the subsurface; theyharness sunlight or chemical energyto synthesize biomass or convert it to CO2 and methane;they ‘eat’ rocks and metals; and they precipitate minerals.Students can study the relationship of bacteria and archaeato geological processes by combining organic and inor-ganic chemical analyses of waters and gases, thermody-namic modeling of reaction energetics, microbial culturingexperiments, molecular probing for metabolic activity, andsurveys of gene sequences.

Graduate students have the opportunity to work in one ormore research groups, combining fieldwork (for example inthe Aeolian Islands of Sicily, Egypt’s Western Desert, Dalmatiain Croatia, or Yellowstone National Park), laboratory exper-iments, state-of-the-art analyses, geographic informationsystems, and computer modeling. Collaborations acrossdepartments and other institutions are commonplace andhighly encouraged. Our geobiology faculty and studentscurrently have joint projects with colleagues in Biology,Environmental Engineering, Anthropology, and the Schoolof Medicine here at Washington University, as well as withleading labs at other institutions (e.g., MIT, Arizona State,Illinois, South Florida, Monterey Bay Aquarium, WoodsHole Oceanographic Institution, University of Bremen,INGV in Palermo).

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Geobiology Studies

Associate Professor Jan Amend (right) with astudent working on the arsenic-rich shallow-seahydrothermal vents off Ambitle Island, PapuaNew Guinea

Graduate student Johanna Kieniewiczmeasures a stratigraphic sectionthrough Pleistocene iron-rich springsediments, Dakhleh Oasis, WesternDesert, Egypt.

Research Opportunities

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Research Opportunities

An ocean bottom seismograph awaits deploy-ment on the ship deck as the sun sets over theMariana Islands in the Western Pacific. Theinstruments were recovered 11 months later andthe resulting seismic data formed the basis forseveral PhD theses written by WashingtonUniversity graduate students.

Graduate student Cynthia Fadem usesthe mass spectrometer.

Propagation of seismic shear waves in Earth’smantle from a deep earthquake (red star at lowerleft). This image is part of a computer animationdone with the summation of Earth’s normal modesof oscillation.

Graduate school is the entry point into the chal-lenging and exciting world of scientific research. AtWashington University, you will learn to carry out researchunder the mentorship of one or more top-notch scientists.Graduate students in our program initiate research projectsduring their first year and are heavily involved in researchby their second year. The work typically results in peer-reviewed publications and ultimately leads to the PhD thesis.

Research topics are selected in consultation with a facultyadvisor who will provide guidance, although the work you

pursue will be done by you and will constitute new andindependent research. Research opportunities in the pasthave included participation in planetary missions and dataanalysis; fieldwork in North America, Antarctica, Africa,Europe, and the Western Pacific; computations focused onthe structure and dynamics of planetary interiors; andextensive use of our analytical instrumentation to explorethe formation of the early solar system, the evolution of thePrecambrian crust, paleoenvironmental reconstruction, andthe thermodynamics of microbial communities.

Research opportunities

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Yellowstone NationalPark

Mars

Glacier National Park

Mississippi River basin

Missouri River basin

Meramec River basin

California coast ranges

Jupiter

Saturn

Uranus

Neptune

Moon

Pluto

Mercury

Madagascar

Fiji

Tonga

Mariana Islands

Egypt: WesternDesert, High Desert

Sicily, Italy

Rio Tinto, Spain

Antarctica

Mauna Kea, Hawaii

West Greenland Iceland

California CoastRanges

Glacier National Park

YellowstoneNationalPark

Missouri River Basin

Mississippi River Basin

...and the Solar System

Recent research sites around the globe...

Fiji Antarctica Mariana Islands

Cameroon

Patagonia

New Guinea

Croatia

Iraq

Quebec

Venus Moon Mars Io

Mojave National Preserve

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Departments

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The Department’s multidisciplinary approachincludes strong connections to other departments in Arts & Sciences including: Anthropology (geoarchaeology);Biology (extremophiles); and Physics (extraterrestrial

materials). We also have close ties with the WashingtonUniversity School of Medicine (biomineralization and biomaterials), and the School of Engineering, in ElectricalEngineering (signal processing and retrieval) and Energy,Environmental, and Chemical Engineering.

The Department benefits greatly from the presenceof the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences(http://mcss.wustl.edu), an interdisciplinary center thatfacilitates collaborative research in the space sciences and ties together researchers in our department and theDepartment of Physics. The Center also facilitates short-and long-term visits from space scientists, provides fundsfor graduate fellowships, and awards seed funding forspace science projects that need development beforeproposals for funding from outside agencies.

The Department is also involved in a University-wide environmental initiative to develop research and teachingprograms at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.The undergraduate program is already well developed and run as the Environmental Studies Program with participating faculty from our department along withBiology, Anthropology, Political Science, and Economics(http://epsc.wustl.edu/enst). We expect to develop a similar program at the graduate level.

Related Departments and Programs

The Earth & Planetary Sciences Building

The NanoSIMS is an ion microprobe in the Laboratoryfor Space Sciences. The instrument is the first in theworld built to analyze the isotopic and elemental composition of extremely small samples at a sub-micrometer scale. From left: the late Robert Walker, former director of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, explains how the NanoSIMS operatesto Edward Macias, dean of Arts & Sciences,Chancellor Mark Wrighton, and John F. McDonnell,former chair of the University’s Board of Trustees.

Facilities

The Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences ishoused in a new building containing excellent network andcomputing facilities. The building is LEED (Leadership inEnergy and Environmental Design) certified by the U.S.Green Building Council. It contains the 3,200-square-footRonald Rettner Earth & Planetary Sciences Library withresources including 40,000 volumes, 175 print and elec-tronic journals, a computer lab, and a map room, providingconvenient access for all researchers and students.

The Department is equipped with a variety of the latestanalytical and computational instrumentation. A list of themajor equipment includes:

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Equipment and Facilities

Analytical Instrumentation• Fully automated JEOL-8200 electron microprobe with five

wavelength-dispersive spectrometers, an energy-dispersivespectrometer, and a cathodoluminescence detector

• Cameca IMS3f ion microprobe• Cameca NanoSIMS 50 ion microprobe• Two VG Sector 54 thermal ionization mass spectrometers• Finnegan MAT “Element” high-resolution ICP-mass spectrometer• MAT 252 stable isotope spectrometer• Siemens SRS-200 and SRS-300 sequential X-ray fluorescence

spectrometers for XRF analyses• Rigaku vertical X-ray diffractometer• SpectruMedix Aurora capillary electrophoresis DNA sequencer• Two HoloLab 5000-532 Raman microprobes (Kaiser Optical

System, Inc.)• HoloLab 5000-633 Raman microprobe (Kaiser Optical System, Inc.)• Bomem far-IR to visible Fourier transform spectrometer• Nexus 670 FTIR spectrometer with attenuated total reflectance

capability (Thermo Nicolet)• Thirty microprocessor-controlled gas-mixing furnaces with

electronic mass flow controllers and zirconiaoxygen sensors

• Gas-source mass spec-trometers for noble-gasisotopic analyses

• Diamond anvil cell laboratory

• Netszch laser-flash apparatus for thermal diffusivity

• Canberra Genie-ESP gamma-ray spectrometry system with fourdetectors for neutron activation analysis

Geophysical and Remote Sensing Equipment• Four Streckheisen broadband seismographs with Reftek data-

loggers for seismic field deployments • Two portable digital magnetometers• Worden gravimeter• 24-channel modular seismic exploration system• Remote-sensing, mapping/imaging spectrometers for miner-

alogical and biogeochemical studies• ASD portable field reflectance spectrometer (0.4 to 2.5 micrometers)• Designs and Prototypes emission spectrometer (2 to 20

micrometers)

Computational Systems• 90-node Beowulf parallel computer for geodynamical

calculations • Department computer laboratory (16 workstations used by

classes and labs, graduate and undergraduate students, andlibrary patrons)

• Planetary Data System (PDS) 16-processer data server • Planetary Data System (PDS) 30 TB RAID data storage• Steve Fossett Virtual Laboratory for Planetary Exploration,

a CAVE-based simulation facility for stereo visualization of data sets

• Seismology 8-processor server with 6 TB RAID disk system• Gigabit network connection into Department, and campus

wireless throughout the building

Graduate student Brian Dreyer loads asample into the ICP-mass spectrometerfor analysis.

Cathodoluminescence (CL) imageof the mineral zircon (ZrSiO4)showing internal concentricgrowth zonation and a complexcrystallization history.

Graduate Programs

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“Washington University was theright place and the right fit for mefor graduate school. My nontraditionalundergraduate major in aerospace engineeringwas treated as a strength when I came to theUniversity’s Department of Earth & Planetary

Sciences, and myadvisor and profes-sors worked with me to build on thatbackground for the future. Some ofthe most valuableaspects of my timein St. Louis were thepure strength of thetraining I received as well as the oppor-tunities to explore

the Earth and other planets in new ways andexperience the excitement of planetary mis-sions. Clearly, the camaraderie and commonsense-of-place among the graduate studentsand the collegial relationships built with thefaculty were important parts of making theprocess of achieving my academic goals andthe graduate experience memorable. I can hon-estly say that the influences I had as well as thestrength and breadth of experiences during myeducation at Washington University continueto open doors to new areas of research andmake the process of doing science satisfyingand enjoyable.”

Steven A. Hauck, II, PhD 01Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve University

Graduate Programs

The graduate program at Washington Universityis designed to give you the knowledge and experienceneeded to succeed in whatever future path you choose.Combining strong foundations with flexibility, the programprepares students for futures in academia, research, and industry.

Both the Master’s and PhD programs emphasize coursework during the first two years, combining breadth and depth requirements, both within and outside of theDepartment. The graduate programs also emphasizeresearch and all students begin research during their firstyear, with an oral defense of their research work coming atthe end of their second year. A successful research defenseprovides entry into the PhD program.

Tuition is typically waived for students accepted into thegraduate programs, and monthly salaries are providedthrough a combination of research and teaching assistant-ships as well as fellowships. Teaching assistantships (TAs)are paid by the University for support in teaching courses.Research assistantships (RAs) are paid through the researchgrants of individual faculty members, and support researchconnected with funded projects. Salary support for severalcompetitive fellowships is also available. Students are supported during summers through research grants anddepartment funds.

The PhD is awarded upon completion of a thesis that isapproved by a faculty committee after a formal presenta-tion. The Department curriculum and research programs aredesigned to allow students to complete their PhD (includ-ing Master’s degree work) within five years.

Left: A mural in the Earth & Planetary SciencesBuilding depicts the Moon, Mercury, and Venusover Antarctica.

Washington University in St. Louis encourages and gives fullconsideration to all applicants for admission, financial assis-tance, and employment. The University does not discriminate inaccess to, or treatment, or employment in, its programs andactivities on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual ori-entation, national origin, veteran status, or disability. PresentDepartment of Defense policy governing ROTC and AFROTCprograms discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation; suchdiscrimination is inconsistent with Washington University policy.Inquiries about compliance should be addressed to theUniversity’s Vice Chancellor for Human Resources, WashingtonUniversity in St. Louis, Campus Box 1184, One Brookings Drive,St. Louis, MO 63130-4899, (314) 935-5990.

For more information, or to schedule avisit, please contact us at:

Department of Earth & Planetary SciencesWashington University in St. LouisCampus Box 1169One Brookings DriveSt. Louis, Missouri 63130-4899Phone: (314) 935-5610Fax: (314) 935-7361

http://epsc.wustl.eduE-mail: gradadmit@levee.wustl.edu