Summer is the best season of the year to explore the geology of Oregon. Class field trips are a great opportunity to get out of the classroom and take advantage of the beautiful weather. Fulfill your Group Science Requirements with any one of the geology courses offered this summer. Registration begins May 5.
Geol 101 Earth’s Dynamic Interior (June 23—July 20) Learn how the processes within the Earth operate to form mountain ranges, volcanoes, and earthquakes. Be able to take a hike in the hills or along the shoreline and understand how the region was formed from the information of events recorded in the rocks. One field trip is scheduled and a variety of field trip options exist for Friday, Saturday, and/or Sunday during the first three weekends of class. D. Blackwell
Geol 213 Geology of the National Parks (June 23—July 20) This course takes you on a geologic virtual tour of many scenic national parks and explores the natural processes that formed their landscapes. Learn how the action of volcanoes, earthquakes, plate movements, glaciers, rivers, and more fashioned and sculpted the rocks and sediments that underlie some of our treasured national parks and monuments. The class will emphasize the parks of the Cascades, the Grand Canyon, and a number of Utah’s national parks, among others. On our class field trip we will explore places in the Oregon Coast Range and along the coast that illustrate national parks geology. C. Owen
Geol 308 Oregon & Pacific NW (June 23—July 20) Did you ever wonder which Cascade volcano will erupt next, how the Wallowa Mountains formed, why dinosaur fossils are so scarce in the Pacific Northwest, how catastrophic floods carved the Columbia River Gorge, or when the next great earthquake will generate a tsunami to devastate the coast? Learn about the amazing geologic history of your backyard. Take field trips and explore the region. Do all this in Geology 308. One field trip is scheduled and a variety of field trip options exist for Fri, Sat, and/or Sunday during the first three weekends of class. D. Blackwell
Geol 102 Environmental Geology (July 21—August 13) Discover the satisfaction of seeing the landscape with new eyes and understanding how mountains, canyons, deserts, glaciers, and other land features form. Environmental Geology & Landscape Development explores natural scenery and probes human interactions with the landscape and its hazards, like flooding, sea level rise, landslides and tsunamis. The course includes a field trip through the Coast Range to the beach that explores the development of the beautiful Oregon landscapes and studies their geologic hazards. C. Owen
Geol 103 Evolving Earth (July 21—August 13) This historical geology course covers the history of the earth and the life which has lived on the earth. Picture-filled lectures are supplemented by laboratory sessions which use maps, fossils, and rock specimens to illustrate concepts of geologic processes and paleontology. Includes a one-day field trip to beautiful Seal Rock on the Oregon Coast for an easy, fun geological mapping experience. M. Baxter
Geol 307 Oceanography (July 21—August 13) This course covers the tectonics, history, biology, chemistry, and geography of today’s oceans, as well as exploring environmental topics that concern the oceans (and therefore, us) of our beautiful, blue water world. Our field trip visits the southern Oregon coast, including Charleston and Cape Arago, for a day filled with tide-pooling, marine mammal watching, a visit to a boat marina, and other sites that give real experience of the marine realm and some of the environmental problems that may occur in our oceans and along our coastlines. M. Baxter