Field Methods in Earth Science

5 credits

Syllabus, Master's level, 1GE043

A revised version of the syllabus is available.
Code
1GE043
Education cycle
Second cycle
Main field(s) of study and in-depth level
Earth Science A1F, Water Engineering A1F
Grading system
Pass with distinction (5), Pass with credit (4), Pass (3), Fail (U)
Finalised by
The Faculty Board of Science and Technology, 30 August 2018
Responsible department
Department of Earth Sciences

Entry requirements

Applied Geoinformatics for Earth Sciences (physical geography specialisation) or Hydrological Processes (hydrology specialisation). Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6.

Learning outcomes

On completion of the course, the student should be able to:

  • Describe the underlying theory for different measurement methods and data collection systems which are used for environmental measurements
  • Estimate the representativity of measurements in time and space, and quanity the uncertainty of variability of the measurements
  • Prepare, carry out, and process field measurements in the earth sciences
  • Compare different measurement methods and desribe their strengths, weaknesses and usefullness for different applications

Content

During the course, common field measurement methods are studied in the fields of physical geography and hydrology, such as geodetic methods, environmental monitoring with measurement instruments, soil investigation methods, sediment sampling for environmental development studies, hydrological measurements, and hydrochemical analyses. A large part of the course focuses on independent project work that is conducted in groups, where data handling and interpretation of collected data are included. The course also addresses the planning and implementation of field measurements, the estimation of uncertainties in data, and the assessment of data quality, repreducibility and documentation.

Instruction

Lectures, field work and computere exercises.

Assessment

Assessment is divided among exercises (1 credit) and oral and written reports (4 credits).

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the disability coordinator of the university.