Research Areas
Atmospheric Sciences
We study extreme weather, climate change, and their impacts on both ecosystems and modern society.
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
Purdue researchers use Rossby waves to predict heatwaves
03-18-2024
Understanding why heatwaves happen is crucial. Heatwaves have devastating consequences across the world. Prolonged exposure to heat can have significant impacts on health, ecosystems, water resources, and even infrastructure. Researchers Valentina Castañeda, PhD student, and Lei Wang, assistant professor, from Purdue University’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, believe they have found a strong indicator for the prediction of heat waves. The team uses Rossby waves to predict heatwave events. They recently published their results in the American Geophysical Union’s JGR-Atmospheres.
6 questions with NASA astronaut Drew Feustel, who will be at IMS for the total eclipse
03-15-2024
WRTV — As a child, Andrew Feustel never really dreamed of becoming an astronaut. But somehow, he knew, deep in his heart, that he would one day travel to outer space. "When I was growing up," Feustel said, "I just somehow believed that I would have an opportunity to eventually to work in the Human Spaceflight program. "He put in the work, investing years into making himself a NASA candidate. He exercised, honed his mechanical skills and got an education, earning two degrees from Purdue University along the way.
NASA’s Mars rover probes ancient shorelines for signs of life
03-14-2024
SCIENCE — NASA’s rover, which is collecting rock samples to eventually send to Earth, has explored a ring of rocks just inside the rim of Jezero crater, which is thought to have been filled with water billions of years ago. An initial analysis suggests the rocks are composed of rounded grains of carbonate, a mineral that precipitates out of water. It’s a promising sign that the rocks were once beachfront property, says Briony Horgan, a planetary scientist at Purdue University who leads the rover’s science campaign. “You can imagine the waves crashing up against the shores of an ancient paleolake,” she says.
Burial Depths of Lava Flows on the Moon
03-11-2024
Professor Ali Bramson, of Purdue EAPS, created this storymaps website to explore the burial depths of lava flows on the Moon. Check out the study of lunar radar datasets and their ability to decipher locations of "cryptomaria".
1 Month out from total solar eclipse
03-11-2024
FOX59 — We are officially 1 month out from the total solar eclipse, in which the path of totality will expand through parts of Indiana. But what is the path of totality? And why is the solar eclipse so special? Fox59 talks to Ali Bramson, assistant professor and planetary scientist with Purdue University, to learn more about what makes this event rare and exciting!