Atmospheric & Earth Sciences at SCSU

Our hands-on programs encompass a broad range of interdisciplinary fields built on a foundation of physical sciences and mathematics with faculty working closely with students to prepare them for productive careers or for continued study at the graduate level.

Faculty provide an excellent learning environment for students through the use and assessment of a variety of learning experiences including formal class work, laboratory and field work, learning through peer interaction, undergraduate research, and internships, while always being open to new and improved forms of learning.

St. Cloud State University offers the only hydrology and meteorology programs in Minnesota.

Senior Research Project

All students graduating from an Atmospheric & Hydrologic Sciences program complete a capstone project during which they conduct scientific research while working with experts in their preferred content area and then share their results with peers, research mentors, and faculty members. Sample projects include:

• effective interdisciplinary science communication tools, techniques, and impacts
• developing tools for teaching meteorology using virtual and augmented reality
• microphysics studies of raindrops and snowflake measurements
• meteorological instrument design, construction, and testing
• in-depth case studies involving analysis and modeling of severe weather events
• global interannual and interseasonal climate variability
• numerical modeling studies of weather and climate
• verification of fire weather tools using satellite observations
• designing solutions for local/regional companies to address real-world engineering problems
• outcrop-scale field mapping of granites and basalt dikes at local rock exposures