Students investigate neotectonic features in the San Gabriel Mountains while developing foundational skills in field observation, geologic interpretation, hazard recognition, and scientific note-taking. 

A research cruise on San Pedro Bay introduces students to oceanographic instruments, field-sampling procedures, environmental data collection, and the practical challenges of working in a marine environment. 

Fieldwork at Torrey Pines Natural Reserve and Sunset Cliffs gives students experience describing sedimentary rocks, interpreting stratigraphic relationships, identifying depositional environments, and documenting geologic observations in the field. 

Students conduct beach surveys at Crystal Cove State Park using traditional and modern measurement techniques while learning to collect, analyze, and interpret the types of coastal data used in environmental consulting, resource management, and hazard assessment. 

At the Oceano Dunes, students use ground-penetrating radar to investigate modern and ancient aeolian processes while gaining practical experience in geophysical survey design, field-data acquisition, subsurface interpretation, and collaborative problem-solving. 

Students use GIS and remote sensing to address applied environmental and Earth science problems, developing experience in spatial data management, geoprocessing, quantitative analysis, cartographic design, and communicating results through professional-quality maps. 

This graduate course provides hands-on training in uncrewed aircraft system operation, FAA regulations, mission planning, RTK-GNSS surveying, Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry, and the production and interpretation of high-resolution geospatial data for earth science applications.