Planetary Geology Lab
Undergraduate course, Environmental Sciences, 1900
I designed this course to introduce undergraduates to both the observational and the quantitiative exploration of rocky bodies across the Solar System. Students utilize spacecraft data from repositories such as the Planetary Data System to investigate volcanism, tectonism, gradation, and impact cratering across multiple terrestrial planets and moons. The curriculum progresses from surface age estimation via crater size-frequency distributions and the kinematic modeling of volcanic plumes to the calculation of interior properties using isostatic and lithospheric flexure models. These analytical methods culminate in photogeologic mapping exercises where students construct stratigraphic columns and evaluate proposed Mars rover landing sites using multispectral and topographic datasets. The course concludes by applying physical principles to the structural limits of small porous bodies and the orbital mechanics governing planetary tides and satellite stability.
Some of the assignments were derived from my undergraduate coursework at UC Santa Cruz.