Earth & Space Sciences

This course provides students with a thorough understanding of the nature and origin of igneous and metamorphic rocks, from their formation and distribution to their geological expressions and associations with particular plate tectonic settings. The course also builds on fundamental concepts of geochemistry and mineralogy to explain phase behavior in high temperature systems using quantitative phase diagrams and approaches. Integral practical classes use both hand specimens and optical mineralogy to understand diagnostic textures - which are used to identify and classify igneous and metamorphic rocks. The course provides an introduction to modern research practice in the fields of igneous and metamorphic petrology.

This course involves student-led research and dissemination around contemporary environmental topics e.g. renewable energy, food security etc. Working in groups, students explore an issue or problem, undertake research on it, and communicate their work in a form accessible to non-academic audiences e.g. a policy note or a science communication piece. This helps students to develop key graduate attributes and consider their own employment prospects beyond the academy.

This course engages students in global scale geological and environmental processes and challenges from deep geological time, to the present, and into the future. This is achieved using a variety of spatial, numerical, geochemical, computational, and field data collection methods and analysis.

This course not only enables students to establish the basic concepts and knowledge of aerospace technology. In addition, it is more important to broaden students' horizons, expand their knowledge, cultivate their interest in aviation, study aviation, and devote themselves to the aviation industry, enable them to initially establish an awareness of aerospace engineering, stimulate their enthusiasm for learning subsequent professional courses and their thirst for knowledge about future technology, and cultivate a good atmosphere of courage to explore and innovate.

This course covers the physical, chemical, and biological processes that impact the oceans and atmosphere. As Earth’s fluid envelopes, the oceans and atmosphere share many dynamical similarities, as well as important differences. The course covers the geophysical fluid dynamics of the ocean and atmosphere, which influence the large-scale transport of heat and water/air masses, as well as small-scale features such as eddies and convection. Different modes of climate variability, such as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation are investigated. This course also covers key biogeochemical processes that impact on the chemistry of the ocean and atmosphere, including carbon and nutrient cycling, and air-sea gas exchange. The insights from the physical circulation of the ocean and atmosphere build on knowledge of biological and chemical processes and reactions to understand key concepts such as cloud formation and aerosols.

This course provides a fundamental framework for interpreting major petrological processes acting within the silicate portion of planet Earth. The course focuses on solid-state equilibria, liquid-solid phase equilibria, crystallography, and spatial associations. 

This course discusses the process, method, design, and selection of materials for various industries including the automotive, aeronautical, and aerospace industries. It also examines different materials and their applications including metallic foams, intermetallics, carbon-based materials, nanomaterials, and phase change materials. Pre-requisites: Materials Science and Engineering 

This introductory astronomy course discusses the following topics: motion of celestial bodies; celestial vault; history of astronomy; telescopes and CCD cameras; astronomy from space; the solar system; stars; cosmological models; nearby universe.

An introduction to the physical processes occurring in the Earth's atmosphere. Interpretation of weather maps and satellite images, cloud types and formation, atmospheric structure, thermodynamic processes, rain formation, solar and terrestrial radiation, energy balance at the surface, cumulus and cumulonimbus convection, and air pollution.