Earth & Environmental Science

The master’s candidate must demonstrate competence in mathematics, chemistry, and physics comparable to the requirements for the Bachelor of Science degree in Geology. The Master of Science degree in Geology may be earned under either of the following plans:

The student’s course of study must be approved by the advisory committee and must fulfill the general requirements for the master’s degree with thesis and must include ERTH 480 or the equivalent, if not previously satisfied, two credits of GEOL 592, at least six credit hours of GEOL 591, and at least four credit hours of GEOL 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time. Credits earned in GEOL 592 and 593 may not be applied towards the 30 credits required for the M.S. degree.

The student’s course of study must be approved by the advisory committee and must fulfill the general requirements for the master’s degree without thesis and must include ERTH 480 or the equivalent, if not previously satisfied, two credits of GEOL 592, at least three credit hours of GEOL 590, and at least four credit hours of GEOL 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time. Credits earned in GEOL 592 and 593 may not be applied towards the 30 credits required for the M.S. degree.

A program of study for the master’s degree must be approved by the student’s advisory committee and must satisfy the general requirements for the degree, including GEOP 590 (at least three credit hours) or GEOC 591 (at least six credit hours).

Students must complete two credit hours of GEOC 592, at least four credit hours of GEOC 593 (unless the degree is completed in a shorter time), 12 credit hours in geochemistry, and six credit hours in upper‐division or graduate chemistry courses. As part of the degree requirements, students must have completed CHEM 331; GEOC 507, GEOC 544, ERTH 200 (mineralogy); or their equivalents.

The student’s course of study must be approved by the advisory committee and must fulfill the general requirements for the master’s degree with thesis and must include (unless taken in undergraduate work): ERTH 325 and 448, or their equivalents; upper‐division geology, six credit hours; competence in mathematics corresponding to nine credit hours beyond calculus; at least six credit hours of GEOP 591, two credit hours of GEOP 592, at least four credit hours of GEOP 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time, and twelve additional credit hours in graduate geophysics (up to six credit hours of this requirement may be replaced with non‐geophysics graduate courses with the advisor’s approval).

Courses approved by the student’s advisory committee must fulfill the general requirements for the master’s degree without thesis and must include (unless taken in undergraduate work): ERTH 325 and 448, or their equivalents; upper‐division geology, six credit hours; competence in mathematics corresponding to nine credit hours beyond calculus; at least three credit hours of GEOP 590, two credit hours of GEOP 592, at least four credit hours of GEOP 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time, and twelve additional credit hours of graduate courses in geophysics (up to six credit hours of this requirement may be replaced with non‐geophysics graduate courses with the advisor’s approval)

The student’s course of study must be approved by the advisory committee and must fulfill the general requirement for the master’s degree and must include:

ERTH 440,

HYD 507, 508, 510

Six credits from graduate-level hydrology courses listed in the course catalog

HYD 591 (at least six credit hours)

HYD 592 (two credit hours)

HYD 593 (four credit hours)

ERTH 202 or equivalent

MATH 283, 382, 584 or equivalent

At least three additional graduate‐level course credits approved by the advisory committee

(Examples of courses other than hydrology which are appropriate for graduate programs in hydrology include, but are not limited to: BIOL 343, 446; CHEM 331, 332, 333, 334; ERTH 405, 409, 444, 445, 448, 460; GEOL 503, 509, 547, 553; GEOP 505, 529; MATH 332, 382, 384, 410, 411, 415, 435, 436, 438, 483, 486, 488, 511, 512, 533, 586, 587; PETR 445, 523, 544, 546, 564; PHYS 421, 526.) 

ERTH 440, Hydrological Theory and Field Methods, 4 cr, 3 cl hrs, 3 lab hrs

Prerequisites: MATH 132, PHYS 132

Offered fall semester

Fundamentals of hydrological flow and transport will be presented. Precipitation, runoff processes, and flood generation. Capillarity, unsaturated flow, and infiltration. Laws of flow in porous media, hydraulic storage, and flow to wells. Laboratory and field exercises that demonstrate and implement fundamental concepts of the hydrological cycle.

 

HYD 507, 507D, Hydrogeochemistry, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisite: CHEM 122; Pre or Corequisite: ERTH 440 

Offered fall semester

The thermodynamics and aqueous chemistry of natural waters, with emphasis on groundwater. Chemical equilibrium concepts, surface chemistry, redox reactions, and biochemistry. The interaction of water with the atmosphere and geologic materials. Basic concepts applied to problems of groundwater quality evolution, water use, and groundwater contamination. Shares lecture with ERTH 407, with additional expectations for graduate credit. (Same as CHEM 531 and GEOC 507.)

 

HYD 508, Flow and Transport in Hydrologic Systems, 4 cr, 3 cl hrs, 3 lab/recitation hrs

Prerequisites: ERTH 440, 440L and 510

Offered spring semester

Principles of flow and transport in hydrological systems, including rivers, lakes, aquifers, the vadose zone, glaciers and the lower atmosphere. Fluid mechanical and thermodynamic properties, fluid statics, fluid dynamics, including mass, momentum and energy conservation, and transport of heat, particles and non‐reactive chemicals with fluid flow. Single and multiphase laminar flow in porous and fractured permeable media. Turbulence and related topics that are of particular interest to hydrologists.

 

HYD 510, 510D, Quantitative Methods in Hydrology, 3 cr hrs

Prerequisite: MATH 231; Pre or Corequisite ERTH 440

Offered fall semester

Introduction to the methods of mathematical physics used in hydrologic science. Presented in the context of mathematical models of water and energy balances, fluid flow, and heat & solute transport. Application to aquifers, the vadose zone, land‐surface runoff, rivers, and the atmospheric boundary layer. Methods span advanced engineering calculus, including numerics and differential equations. Use of software (Matlab, Maple, and COMSOL Multiphysics) for problem solving and solution presentation. Programming with Matlab.

 

HYD 511, 511D, Groundwater Hydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisite: ERTH 440

Offered alternate spring semesters

Study of the occurrence, movement, and chemical and isotopic composition of groundwater. Hydrogeologic properties. Groundwater recharge and stream/aquifer interaction, flow net and hydrograph analysis. Groundwater exploration using geologic and geophysical methods. Groundwater in different geological, climate, and physiographic regimes. Characterization of groundwater using stable isotopes and major ion analysis. Physics of flow to wells, steady‐ state and transient solutions to well hydraulics equations, image well theory, responses of aquifers to perturbations. Role of groundwater in contaminant migration and heat transfer. (Shares lecture with ERTH 411, with additional expectations for graduate credit)

 

HYD 513, 513D, Watershed Dynamics & Ecohydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisite: ERTH 440

Offered alternate spring semesters

Processes governing hydrological flow rates and pathways through watershed systems: hillslope runoff production and in-channel flood routing. Emphasis on physical mechanisms and their treatment in models, as well as observations made in the field. Interactions between terrestrial plants and water, nutrients, and light resources in semiarid ecosystems and riparian zones. Vegetation induced flow roughness, ecohydrological processes and dynamics, and simple numerical models. (Shares lecture with ERTH 413, with additional expectations for graduate credit)

 

HYD 514, 514D, Vadose Zone Hydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisite: ERTH 440

Offered alternate fall semesters

Physics of unsaturated flow in porous media, multiphase flow, potentials and water retention, unsaturated hydraulic conductivity, transient flow problems. Mathematical modeling of variable-density flow. Analysis of slope stability, drainage through mine tailings and rock piles, hazardous waste migration, soil moisture controls on evapotranspiration and vegetation growth. (Shares lecture with ERTH 414, with additional expectations for graduate credit)

 

HYD 534, 534D, Introduction to Remote Sensing, 3 cr, 2 cl hrs, 3 lab hrs

Prerequisite: PHYS 122 or consent of instructor

Introduction to the theory and practical use of remotely sensed satellite images. Principles of radiation physics; sensor systems; data acquisition; image analysis; classification schemes. Remote sensing applications to atmospheric sciences, hydrology, mineral and oil exploration, natural hazards monitoring, and land and resources management. Become familiar with ERDAS Imagine remote sensing software. Laboratory exercises using ERDAS Imagine deal primarily with computer analysis of remotely sensed images with some field exercises. Shares lecture/lab with ERTH 434, with additional expectations for graduate credit. (Same as GEOL/GEOP 534)

 

HYD 536, Advanced Remote Sensing, 3 cr, 2 cl hrs, 3 lab hrs

Prerequisite: ERTH 434 or HYD 534 or GEOL 534

Offered on demand

This class deals with quantitative remote sensing for determination of the components of the energy balance (net radiation, latent and sensible heat fluxes, soil heat flux) and soil moisture, hyperspectral and multispectral image processing, radar and microwave imagery. In addition, advanced applications for geology, geophysics and geochemistry will be discussed. Shares lecture/lab with ERTH 436, with additional expectations for graduate credit. (Same as GEOL 536)

 

HYD 516, 516D, Geofluids, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Corequisites: ERTH 440, HYD 511 or PETR 445

Offered alternate spring semesters

The role of groundwater in geologic processes. Fluid flow impelling mechanisms within the earth’s crust to depths of 10 km. The role of groundwater in petroleum generation/migration, overpressure/underpressure formation in sedimentary basins, hydrothermal ore deposit formation, contact metamorphism, geothermal systems, seismicity, slope failure, sediment transport, and glaciation

 

HYD 520, Data-driven Modeling in Science and Engineering, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisites: MATH 283 or 382 and MATH 335 or consent of instructor

Statistical learning techniques and data assimilation for science and engineering applications. Focus is on practical applications and the understanding of the assumptions underlying techniques, allowing students to learn the basics of useful tools for data-driven modeling and revisit their theoretical and practical underpinnings as needed. Topics may include supervised and unsupervised learning, regression, classification, importance sampling, ensemble forecasting, and Kalman Filtering. The codes R and Python will be used. (Same as GEOP 520)

 

HYD 546, Contaminant Hydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisites: ERTH 440; HYD 507. Pre‐ or Corequisite: HYD 508

The physics, chemistry, and biology of inorganic, organic, and microbial contaminants in groundwater and surface water systems. Mechanisms by which contaminants are introduced. Transport and transformations of contaminants in surface waters, the vadose zone, and the saturated zones. Movement, capillary trapping, and solubility of relatively immiscible organic liquids. Contaminant isolation and remediation techniques.

The Professional Master of Hydrology degree is aimed at working professionals or students who whish to increase their qualifications in the hydrologic sciences. The Professional Master Program in Hydrology covers fundamentals of
atmospheric, surface, and subsurface hydrology while leaving the flexibility to focus on related areas of particular
individual interest. This coursework‐only degree requires a minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate level and upper
division coursework.

All student must take:

• ERTH 440 (3 cr)
• Twenty‐one credits of graduate classes in Hydrology.     Examples of available distance education course include:
   HYD 507, HYD 510, HYD 511, HYD 513, HYD 514, HYD 516, HYD   534, HYD 546, HYD 547, HYD 550, HYD 560.
• Six credits of elective classes outside of the Hydrology Program. Examples of available distance education elective
  classes include: MGT 462, MGT 472, GEOL 512, MATH 586, TC 505, TC 575.

NM Tech Distance Education Department utilizes the multimedia technology to stream live and recorded lectures to students wherever they are, requiring only that they have a computer with a broadband Internet connection. Questions related to access and use of the distance education program can be found by contacting the Distance Education Department:

Student support:
Call toll-free 866-644-4887

Technical support and DE studio:
local: 575-835-6277
toll-free: 866-357-2779

robert.hepler@nmt.edu

In order to login into the class portal and participate in a lecture, go to the following web site:

https://nmt.instructure.com/login/canvas

Please contact the Graduate Office (575-835-5513; graduate@nmt.edu) to learn how to apply to the NM Tech graduate program as a “Special Graduate” or a “Part Time” graduate student and to obtain a Student ID (a number starting with 900). The Special Graduate Student application processes is faster but eventually you’ll need to be converted to a “Part Time” graduate student before receiving your certificate. You must be registered during the semester you receive your certificate.

Once you are admitted, your 900 number will be sent to you via the US mail. Alternatively, you’ll need to call the graduate office to obtain your 900 number if time is an issue. The graduate school number is 575-835-5513. Once you have your 900 number you can register for the distance learning classes you wish to take.

 

Questions not answered by this brochure can be directed to:

Mark Person, Professor of Hydrogeology, mark.person@nmt.edu,

575-835-6505 (office), 575-517-7578 (cell)

Our 15-credit Graduate Certificate in Hydrology is intended to provide students with much of the course work that our MSc. students are required to take. On-line students will not be required to participate in laboratory and field components of distance education (DE) classes such as Erth 440. Students who complete the Certificate Program with a B average are eligible to apply this course work towards completion of an MSc. or Ph.D. degrees at NM Tech in Socorro. An MSc. Hydrology degree requires 30 credits and a research thesis. Students must maintain a B average (3.0 GPA) in order to receive a certificate. Courses completed with a grade below a C must be retaken. The program can be completed in about 1.5 years taking 2 courses per semester. The cost of the certificate is about $7000. Some students working at government agencies have used the certificate to secure professional grade and salary increases. A full description of the DE Graduate Certificate program can be viewed here.

Students who take part in this program can interact with the faculty during the classes as they are taught or view lectures asynchronously using the CANVAS distance education software environment. Prospective students need access to a computer with a browser and a high-speed Internet connection in order to participate in lectures, handle assignments, conduct examinations and communicate with faculty, advisors and peers. The classes are accessed via NM Tech distance learning portal described below. We strongly recommend students to view the lectures in real time, if possible, so they can ask questions interactively. Distance education students who are on professional travel may turn assignments in late but will be required to take the exam on the same day as regular students

All DE students are required to take Erth 440. To complete the 15-credit degree requirement, students may choose from the following list of courses: Geol 512D, Geol 550D, Hyd 507D, Hyd 510, Hyd 511D, Hyd 513D, Hyd 514D, Hyd 543. Below is a description of these classes.

 

ERTH 440, Hydrological Theory and Field Methods, 4 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisites: MATH 132, PHYS 132, offered fall semester. 

Fundamentals of hydrological flow and transport will be presented. Precipitation, runoff processes, and flood generation. Capillarity, unsaturated flow, and infiltration. Laws of flow in porous media, hydraulic storage, and flow to wells. Laboratory and field exercises that demonstrate and implement fundamental concepts of the hydrological cycle.

 

HYD 507D, Hydrogeochemistry, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs 

Prerequisite: CHEM 122; Pre or Corequisite: ERTH 440, offered fall semester.

The thermodynamics and aqueous chemistry of natural waters, with emphasis on groundwater. Chemical equilibrium concepts, surface chemistry, redox reactions, and biochemistry. The interaction of water with the atmosphere and geologic materials. Basic concepts applied to problems of groundwater quality evolution, water use, and groundwater contamination. Shares lecture with ERTH 407, with additional expectations for graduate credit.

Distribution of aqueous species in the carbonate system with a total carbon concentration of 10-3 mol/kg.

 

HYD 510D, Quantitative Methods in Hydrology, 3 cr, 2 cl, hrs, 3 lab hrs

Prerequisite: MATH 231; Pre or Co-requisite ERTH 440, offered fall semester.

Introduction to the methods of mathematical physics used in hydrologic science. Presented in the context of mathematical models of water and energy balances, fluid flow, and heat & solute transport. Application to aquifers, the vadose zone, land‐surface runoff, rivers, and the atmospheric boundary layer. Methods span advanced engineering calculus, including numerics and differential equations. Use of software (Matlab, Maple) or problem solving and solution presentation. Programming with Matlab.

Schematic diagram illustrating geometry of a non-linear, one-dimensional island aquifer groundwater flow model which includes recharge (R), water table elevation (h), the saltwater-freshwater interface position (ζ), and pumping well (Qp). As part of Hyd 510, students will develop a finite difference sharp-interface of this system using Matlab ©.

 

HYD 511D, Groundwater Hydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs 

Prerequisite: ERTH 440, offered alternate spring semesters.

Study of the occurrence, movement, and chemical and isotopic composition of groundwater. Hydrogeologic properties. Groundwater recharge and stream/aquifer interaction, flow net and hydrograph analysis. Groundwater exploration using geologic and geophysical methods. Groundwater in different geological, climate, and physiographic regimes. Characterization of groundwater using stable isotopes and major ion analysis. Physics of flow to wells, steady‐ state and transient solutions to well hydraulics equations, image well theory, responses of aquifers to perturbations. Role of groundwater in contaminant migration and heat transfer. (Shares lecture with ERTH 411, with additional expectations for graduate credit).

A) Schematic diagram of hollow stem auger drilling method (B) Schematic diagram showing flow net solution to groundwater into a mine adit.

 

HYD 513D, Watershed Dynamics & Ecohydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs 

Prerequisite: ERTH 440, offered alternate spring semesters.

Processes governing hydrological flow rates and pathways through watershed systems: hillslope runoff production and in-channel flood routing. Emphasis on physical mechanisms and their treatment in models, as well as observations made in the field. Interactions between terrestrial plants and water, nutrients, and light resources in semiarid ecosystems and riparian zones. Vegetation induced flow roughness, ecohydrological processes and dynamics, and simple numerical models.

 

HYD 514D, Vadose Zone Hydrology, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs 

Prerequisite: ERTH 440, offered alternate fall semesters.

Physics of unsaturated flow in porous media, multiphase flow, potentials and water retention, unsaturated hydraulic conductivity, transient flow problems. Mathematical modeling of variable-density flow. Analysis of slope stability, drainage through mine tailings and rock piles, hazardous waste migration, soil moisture controls on evapotranspiration and vegetation growth.

 

GEOL 512D, Introduction to Geographic Information Systems, 3 cr, 2 cl hrs, 3 lab hrs 

Offered Spring semester.

An introduction to the concepts of geographic information systems (GIS). Theoretical background to GIS; introduction to the nature and analysis of spatial data. ArcView and/or ArcGIS.

 

GEOL 550D, Cave and Karst Systems, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs

Prerequisites: CHEM 121 & 122; and either any 100 level ERTH or BIOL 111, offered spring semester, every other year.

A system‐based study of caves and karstic terrains over time including formation mechanisms (speleogenesis), hydrology, geochemistry, mineralogy, and geomicrobiology. Emphasis on caves as interactive microcosms cross‐cutting many disciplines. Shares lecture with ERTH 450, but is graded separately and additional graduate‐level work is required.

 

HYD 547D, Hydrological Modeling, 3 cr, 3 cl hrs 

Prerequisites: ERTH 440, HYD 510

Analysis and synthesis of issues in hydrologic science. Related engineering problem solving. Conceptual modeling process: model conceptualization and parameterization, model diagnosis, testing and validation, and model prediction. Conceptual models for testing scientific hypotheses, assimilating data, developing policy, and solving engineering design and operational problems. Development of simple, two-dimensional groundwater flow models using Matlab. Applications to groundwater flow and contaminant transport problems using MODFLOW GMS software.

Simulated heads due to municipal well field pumping and wellhead delineation zone for Nantucket Island, Massachusetts using MODFLOW-GMS.

 

Online programs are open to applicants with a bachelors degree in any of the natural sciences or engineering disciplines (e.g. earth science, civil engineering, biology, chemistry). Students taking online classes should expect to take 18-24 months to complete the program.

NM Tech Distance Education Department utilizes the multimedia technology to stream live and recorded lectures to students wherever they are, requiring only that they have a computer with a broadband Internet connection. Questions related to access and use of the distance education program can be found by contacting the Distance Education Department:

Student support:
Call toll-free 866-644-4887

Technical support and DE studio:
local: 575-835-6277
toll-free: 866-357-2779

robert.hepler@nmt.edu

In order to login into the class portal and participate in a lecture, go to the following web site:

https://nmt.instructure.com/login/canvas

Please contact the Graduate Office (575-835-5513; graduate@nmt.edu) to learn how to apply to the NM Tech graduate program as a “Special Graduate” or a “Part Time” graduate student and to obtain a Student ID (a number starting with 900). The Special Graduate Student application processes is faster but eventually you’ll need to be converted to a “Part Time” graduate student before receiving your certificate. You must be registered during the semester you receive your certificate.

Once you are admitted, your 900 number will be sent to you via the US mail. Alternatively, you’ll need to call the graduate office to obtain your 900 number if time is an issue. The graduate school number is 575-835-5513. Once you have your 900 number you can register for the distance learning classes you wish to take.

 

Questions not answered by this brochure can be directed to:

Mark Person, Professor of Hydrogeology, mark.person@nmt.edu,

575-835-6505 (office), 575-517-7578 (cell)

The prospective doctoral candidate in Earth and environmental science with specialization in geology should develop a good background in geology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics, in addition to achieving a high level of competence in the field of specialization.

PhD students must include three credits of GEOL 592 and at least six credit hours of GEOL 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time. 

Research fields appropriate for the geology candidate include petrology, volcanology, mineral deposits, geochronology, stable isotopes, environmental geology, coal geology, geohydrology, sedimentation and stratigraphy, regional tectonics, and structural geology. Interdisciplinary programs in the Earth science fields are encouraged.

The prospective doctoral candidate in Earth and environmental science with specialization in geochemistry should develop a good background in chemistry, geology, mathematics, and physics in addition to achieving a high level of competence in the field of specialization.

PhD students must include three credit hours of GEOC 592 and at least six credit hours of GEOC 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time.

Fields of doctoral dissertation research include geochemistry of ore deposits, trace element and isotope geochemistry of igneous and metamorphic systems, fluid‐ inclusion geochemistry, geochronology, hydrogeochemistry, stable isotope geochemistry, and environmental geochemistry. Interdisciplinary programs in the Earth science fields are encouraged.

The prospective doctoral candidate in Earth and environmental science with specialization in physics of the solid Earth should develop a solid background in physics, mathematics, and geology in addition to achieving a high level of competence in the field of geophysics.

With the approval of the advisory committee, the student should select a program including a minimum of nine credit hours in graduate geophysics beyond the MS degree, three credit hours of GEOP 592, at least four credit hours of GEOP 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time, plus additional courses in related fields.

Research fields appropriate for the geophysics candidate include crustal exploration, earthquake seismology, tectonophysics, environmental, and hydrogeothermal studies. Interdisciplinary programs in the Earth science fields are encouraged.

The prospective doctoral candidate in Earth and environmental science with specialization in hydrology should develop a good background in physics, mathematics, chemistry, and geology in addition to achieving a high level of competence in the field of specialization.

With approval of the advisory committee, the student should select a program including a minimum of nine credits in graduate hydrology beyond the MS degree, three credits of HYD 592, plus additional courses in related fields. Some appropriate courses are given under the Master of Science degree requirements.

Research fields appropriate for the doctoral candidate include regional hydrology, groundwater recharge, vadose zone hydrology, stochastic subsurface hydrology, hydrogeochemistry, isotope hydrology, hydroclimatology, pollutant transport, aquifer restoration, multi‐phase flow of immiscible fluids, deterministic and stochastic numerical aquifer simulation, finite difference and finite element numerical methods, and field instrumentation. Interdisciplinary programs in the Earth science fields are encouraged.

The prospective doctoral candidate in Earth and environmental science with specialization in geobiology should develop a good background in chemistry, geology, mathematics, physics, and biology in addition to achieving a high level of competence in the field of specialization.

With the approval of the advisory committee, the student should select a program including a minimum of nine credit hours in graduate coursework beyond the MS degree, three credit hours of GEOB 592 and at least six credit hours of GEOB 593, unless the degree is completed in a shorter time.

Fields of doctoral dissertation research include geomicrobiology, biogeochemical cycling, biologically mediated diagenesis, biological mineral precipitation and dissolution, isotopic geochemistry of biologically mediated processes, origin and early evolution of life, paleobiology, paleontology, and astrobiology. Interdisciplinary programs in the Earth science fields are encouraged.