Earth and Planetary Environmental Science

Earth and planetary environmental science is an academic discipline that seeks to unravel various phenomena occurring in the surface environments of Earth and other planets, viewed from the perspective of "environment."

Through practical training in field surveys conducted both domestically and internationally, as well as techniques such as chemical analysis, genetic studies, and numerical simulations, students gain a deep understanding of Earth as a system interwoven by the atmosphere, oceans, solid Earth, and life.

This department, with its relatively small student body, offers the distinct advantage of close interaction between faculty and students, with “face-to-face contact” through both education and research, making it one of the department's most appealing features.

【Academic features】

Faculty and students unite to resolve various problems

Earth and planetary environmental science is an academic discipline that seeks to elucidate the history of the birth and evolution of Earth, planets, and life, as well as the current environmental and resource challenges facing our planet, through field studies and chemical and biological approaches. This field also aims to forecast the future of Earth. What makes this field so compelling is its focus on themes that embody humanity’s "dreams," as well as those that contribute to humanity's "sustainable development (safety and security)." The scope of this discipline extends spatially from atomic-level phenomena to the entire solar system, and temporally from 4.6 billion years ago to the distant future.

From geological surveys that reveal the formation of the natural world, to the analysis of meteorites and planetary exploration for insights into the solar system, to the mysteries surrounding the birth and evolution of life, to past climate events like global glaciation, and to the elucidation of environmental issues and the mechanisms behind resource formation, this department covers a wide array of fields. Together, the faculty and students, each with their own dreams and aspirations, strive to solve the problems that Earth presents.

Through practical training, which includes field research both domestically and internationally, chemical analysis, genetic studies, and numerical simulations, as well as the graduation research on topics chosen by the students themselves, students learn to approach research from diverse perspectives.

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