We study extreme weather, climate change, and their impacts on both ecosystems and modern society.
Atmospheric Sciences
Environmental Geoscience
We use biology, chemistry, geology, and physics to understand how the Earth System supports such a diversity of life and how human behavior is impacting this system.
Geodata Science Initiative
Data science is the fourth and the newest paradigm of science. In Geodata Science Initiative, we conduct transdisciplinary research, merging or articulating EAPS subject matters with technical areas in data science: statistical and machine learning methods and models, algorithms for the models and methods, and computational environments for data analysis.
Geology and Geophysics
We study the processes that shape our planet, from the building of mountains and oil-bearing sedimentary basins, to the flow of warm rocks and cold glaciers, to the triggering of earthquakes.
Planetary Science
We study the evolution of the solar system and how planets evolve over time due to impacts, tectonics, and atmospheric processes, with an eye to the potential for past and future habitability.
Research News
Rocks and rolls: The computational infrastructure of earthquakes and physics of planetary science
01-14-2026
An expert in earth sciences and seismology, Andrea Donnellan, professor and head of the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, gets much of her data from a bird’s-eye view, studying the planet’s surface from the air and space, using the data to make discoveries and deepen understanding about earthquakes and other geological processes.
Mars Perseverance rover found a rock that could be a giant meteorite
01-08-2026
Earth — NASA’s Perseverance rover has spotted a desk-sized rock, nicknamed Phippsaksla, on Mars that looks suspiciously like an iron-rich meteorite. EAPS's Candice Bedford was cited in the article.
Mars rover: New clues about the ancient atmosphere
01-06-2026
AP — Briony Horgan is a professor of planetary science at Purdue University and a tactical science lead on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover mission. Horgan is among the authors of the important study "Carbonated ultramafic rocks in Jezero crater, Mars," released in the journal Science.
Perseverance continues science mission amid uncertainty about Mars Sample Return
01-06-2026
SpaceNews — NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover is continuing its mission to collect samples despite uncertainty about how, when or even if those samples will be returned to Earth. At a press briefing during the Annual Meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) here Dec. 17, project officials said the rover, which landed in Jezero Crater nearly five years ago, is in good condition as it ascends out of the crater. EAPS's Briony Horgan was quoted in the article.
NASA will soon find out if the Perseverance rover can really persevere on Mars
12-19-2025
Ars Technica — When the Perseverance rover arrived on Mars nearly five years ago, NASA officials thought the next American lander to take aim on the red planet would be taking shape by now. EAPS's Briony Horgan was quoted in the article.