London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

Modules

Physical geography: fundamentals of the physical environment [147]

• Composition of the Earth: plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, rock types, geohazards.

• Tectonics and climate: setting the scene for our unique modern climate system.

• Atmosphere: composition and circulation.

• Hydrosphere and landscape evolution: precipitation, rivers, lakes, erosion, weathering patterns, hillslope dynamics.

• Oceans: surface and deep circulation, upwelling, productivity and climate.

• Biosphere: evolution, ecosystem concepts, ecological processes, soil dynamics, vegetation-geology-climate interactions.

• Global environmental change: glacial-interglacial cycles, sea-level changes, Heinrich events, El Nino southern oscillation, North Atlantic oscillation, global warming.