Chair's Welcome
The study of the earth’s dynamic systems is a field that has seen major advances over the last few decades. Geologists investigate diverse systems that play a large role in controlling the environment at the earth’s surface. Examples include earthquakes, volcanoes, glaciers, landslides, rivers, and shorelines.
Earth processes play a critical role in making our planet habitable, and geologists are constantly in demand to guide communities and nations in their search for clean drinking water and extractable energy and minerals, for example, or in decisions regarding development in fragile coastal regions or in seismically active areas.
The Department of Geological Sciences at UNC–Chapel Hill provides students with a solid training in earth science so that they can advance in highly satisfying careers as professional geologists.
--Allen Glazner, Chair
Newly forming pahoehoe lava on the Big Island, Duke-UNC Hawaii field trip, March 2009.