Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences

The Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences has a great diversity of programs and intersecting disciplines, with faculty and students studying in fields such as Tectonics, Geophysics, Atmospheric Dynamics and Chemistry, Environmental Sciences, Biogeochemistry, Climate Change, Severe Weather, Planetary Sciences, Astrobiology, Data Science, and many other areas. We are committed to strategic initiatives that explore the connections between the Earth’s interior and surface, climate and sustainability, planetary exploration and spacecraft missions, and the development of emerging fields of study.

The 2025 SPOTTR class in front of a non-severe storm near Spotted Horse, WY.

Forecast to field: Purdue class turns storms into a living laboratory

The Students of Purdue Observing Tornadic Thunderstorms for Research (SPOTTR) course, officially listed as EAPS 43500: Severe Storms Field Work, takes students beyond the classroom and into the Great Plains for a week of hands-on experience with severe weather. SPOTTR blends fieldwork with active learning, career exploration, and the use of professional meteorological instruments, giving students the skills to forecast, track, and study storms.

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Purdue Leads NSF-Funded Midwest Agrivoltaics Incubator to Boost Rural Energy and Economic Resilience to Extreme Weather

Rural communities across the Midwest, whose agricultural economies and energy infrastructure are frequently threatened by extreme weather events such as hailstorms, heat waves and high winds, are getting a new lifeline through a National Science Foundation–funded project at Purdue University. EAPS's Dan Chavas is one of Purdue's experts on the project.

Space pollution levels in the atmosphere are rocketing

Chemical and Engineering News — The adage “what goes up must come down” is proving problematic in the space age. As more rockets and satellites in low Earth orbit burn up in the atmosphere at the end of their lives, the amount of introduced vapors and particulate matter there is dramatically rising. EAPS's Dan Cziczo was quoted in the article.

Mars Sample That May Contain Evidence of Life Might Never Come Home

Scientific American — Right now one of the most advanced planetary explorers ever built is scouring the surface of Mars. Supported by a team of hundreds of scientists back on Earth, the Perseverance rover has traveled nearly the distance of a marathon to answer some of the biggest questions about our neighboring world. EAPS's Briony Horgan was quoted in the article.

NASA rover spots something on Mars that doesn't belong there

Mashable — NASA's Perseverance rover has identified an exotic rock on Mars that may be an iron-nickel meteorite, according to scientists on the mission team. EAPS's Candice Bedford was quoted in the article.