How do we know what is inside the Earth and planets? What are the dynamic processes that shape the Earth? This course will use a physics-based approach to investigate these questions and develop an explanation for what drives plate tectonics, the origin of planetary magnetic fields, and the causes of hazards such as earthquakes and volcanoes. You will learn about the methods that are used to image the interior structure and dynamics of the Earth and other planets. You will also learn how these methods are applied in resource exploration, environmental monitoring, satellite missions to other planets and moons, and other scientific studies of the Earth system. The different career options available in geophysics will be discussed. Prerequisites: Physics 20 and Mathematics 30. Note: Credit will be given for only one of GEOPH 110 or 210.

This course presents an overview of the interior structure, composition, dynamics and evolution of the Earth, Planets and Moons. Topics to be covered include: formation of the solar system; planets and exoplanets; the plate tectonics revolution; mountain building and continental dynamics; earthquakes, volcanoes and other geo-hazards; Earth's interior structure and dynamics from seismology, gravity and magnetism; the rotational dynamics of planetary bodies; mantle convection and dynamos. Prerequisites: one of MATH 101, 115, 118, 146; one of PHYS 124, PHYS 144, or EN PH 131, and one of PHYS 126, PHYS 146, or PHYS 130. Note: credit will be given for only one of GEOPH 110 or GEOPH 210.

Near surface geophysical imaging techniques with focus on applications in hydrogeology, glaciology and environmental studies; rock properties; imaging methods covered include: shallow seismic exploration, magnetic exploration, radiometric techniques, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT); electromagnetic (EM) methods; ground penetrating radar (GPR), application to environmental monitoring, climate change, environmental legislation. Prerequisites: one of MATH 101, 115, 118, 146; one of PHYS 124, PHYS 144, or EN PH 131, and one of PHYS 126, PHYS 146, or PHYS 130. Note: Not available to students in Honors or Specialization Geophysics. Note: Offered alternate years only. Consult Department for course schedule.

Geophysical exploration with focus on techniques relevant to hydrocarbon and mineral exploration; gravity and magnetic exploration techniques; basics of seismic wave propagation in Earth; seismic data processing; the geological interpretation of seismic reflection and refraction data. Prerequisites: one of MATH 101, 115, 118, 146; one of PHYS 124, PHYS 144, or EN PH 131, and one of PHYS 126, PHYS 146, or PHYS 130. Note: Not available to students in Honors or Specialization Geophysics. Note: offered alternate years only. Consult Department for course schedule.

Theory of gravity, shape of the earth, nature of the geomagnetic field, magnetic, and electrical exploration methods; factors controlling density, resistivity, and magnetic properties of rocks; applications in environmental geophysics, continental dynamics and mineral exploration; instrumentation. Analysis of gravity, magnetic and resistivity data. Prerequisite: PHYS 281 or 230, MATH 215 or 209 or 317.

Use of reflection and refraction seismology to image the Earth's interior, with application to gas/oil and mineral exploration and environmental assessment; study of current technologies utilized to acquire, image and interpret 2D and 3D data sets. Real data sets and computer assignments will be used to produce seismic images of the subsurface. Prerequisite: PHYS 281 or 230, MATH 215 or 209 or 317.

Overview of the fundamental physical properties of geophysically important materials; physics involved in the measurement of physical properties in the Earth especially in the context of geophysical well logging and laboratory measurement; integration of measurements with geological and geophysical field observations. Prerequisites: PHYS 271 or 208, 281 or 230, MATH 215 or 209 or 317.

Seismology; solutions to the elastic wave equation in layered media; three-component seismic field and ray theory: body and surface waves; normal modes and free oscillations; source mechanism; structure of the Earth; seismometers; inversion of seismic data. Pre or corequisite: Math 334. Prerequisites: PHYS 281.

Theory and application of Maxwell's equations to geophysics; resistivity of rocks, electromagnetic exploration; magnetotellurics, frequency and time domain EM methods, forward and inverse techniques to image crustal and mantle structures. Analysis of EM data collected at field school. Pre- or corequisite: MATH 337. Prerequisites: PHYS 281 or 230, 381, GEOPH 325.

Application of time series analyses and image processing techniques to large geophysical data sets; sampling of data and problems of aliasing; one and two dimensional Fourier transforms; the Z transformation; spectral analysis, filtering, and deconvolution; application of 1D and 2D filtering to seismic and gravity/magnetic data analysis. Prerequisites: MATH 311, GEOPH 326, PHYS 234 or equivalent.

Quantitative methods to determine the physical properties of the Earth from indirect geophysical observations; formal treatment of geophysical inverse theory; topics include linear and nonlinear inverse problems, regularization techniques, model norms and misfit, tomography, and case histories of interpretation and analysis. Prerequisites: PHYS 234, 381, MATH 311, 337, GEOPH 325, 326 or permission of instructor.

Students conduct a wide variety of geophysical measurements in a field situation. The field school is run immediately prior to the fall term. Requires payment of additional student instructional support fees. Refer to the Tuition and Fees page in the University Regulations section of the Calendar. Prerequisites: GEOPH 325 and 326, or consent of instructor. Intended for students in a Specialization or Honours Geophysics program. Students in other programs should contact the Department of Physics for permission. Note: this course is graded on a credit/no credit basis.

A variety of seismic and ground penetrating radar data sets are obtained by the student during field school; these data are corrected, enhanced, and imaged in a computer workstation laboratory, leading to a final geologic interpretation. Results obtained by the student will be presented in the format of a series of professional technical reports. Prerequisites: MATH 209, 214, or equivalent, GEOPH 326, PHYS 234 or equivalent. Pre- or corequisite: GEOPH 426 and 436 (field school).

Topics to be discussed include plate tectonics, continental breakup and assembly; faulting and earthquakes; mantle and lithosphere rheology; global gravity and Earth's rotation; heat transfer and convection in the Earth and planets; hotspots and mantle plumes, plate accretion and subduction; dynamics of the core, planetary magnetism and the geodynamo. Pre- or corequisite: MATH 337. Prerequisites: PHYS 281.

Topics to be discussed include plate tectonics, continental breakup and assembly; faulting and earthquakes; mantle and lithosphere rheology; global gravity and Earth's rotation; heat transfer and convection in the Earth and planets; hotspots and mantle plumes, plate accretion and subduction; dynamics of the core, planetary magnetism and the geodynamo. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Theory and application of Maxwell's equations to geophysics; resistivity of rocks, electromagnetic exploration; magnetotellurics, frequency and time domain EM methods, forward and inverse techniques to image crustal and mantle structures. Analysis of EM data collected at field school. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. Note: This course cannot be taken for credit if credit has already been given for GEOPH 424.

Application of time series analyses and image processing techniques to large geophysical data sets; sampling of data and problems of aliasing; one and two dimensional Fourier transforms; the Z transformation; spectral analysis, filtering, and deconvolution; application of computers in assignments. Note: This course cannot be taken for credit if credit has already been given for GEOPH 426.

Quantitative methods to determine the physical properties of the Earth from indirect geophysical observations; formal treatment of geophysical inverse theory; topics include linear and nonlinear inverse problems, regularization techniques, model norms and misfit, tomography, and case histories of interpretation and analysis. Note: This course cannot be taken for credit if credit has already been given for GEOPH 431.

Students conduct a wide variety of geophysical field measurements and process and interpret the collected data. The field component of the course is usually run immediately prior to the fall term. Requires payment of additional student instructional support fees. Refer to the Tuition and Fees page in the University Regulations section of the Calendar. Prerequisite: consent of instructor. Note: credit may only be obtained for one of GEOPH 436 and GEOPH 536.

A variety of seismic and ground penetrating radar data sets are obtained during field school; these data are corrected, enhanced, and imaged in a computer workstation laboratory, leading to a final geologic interpretation. Results obtained by the student will be presented in the format of a series of professional technical reports. Note: This course cannot be taken for credit if credit has already been given for GEOPH 438.

Seismology and earthquakes; travel-time, amplitude, and waveform computations; body and surface waves; normal modes and free oscillations; source mechanisms; Earth's structure from inversion of teleseismic observations; seismometers; earthquake hazards and risks. Prerequisites: consent of instructor. Note: Credit may be obtained for only one of GEOPH 421 and GEOPH 541.