Students return from the Mojave Desert

Dr Rob Bryant, Professor John Wainwright, and 20 Level-3 BSc Geography/EnvSci students have returned from another successful GEO365 Dryland Fieldclass to the Mojave Desert, USA.

The 10-day fieldclass was based at the Desert Research Centre at Zzyzx, California, which is a field station of the California State University (CSU) located among a haven of natural ponds, dry lakes, and foothills in the Mojave Desert east of Barstow.

As part of the fieldcourse, students were assigned to small groups and given the task of designing and undertaking a detailed research project relating to a range of dryland environments and processes. Projects involved studies of: windlow patterns over vegetation, playa surface change, alluvial fan evolution, rainfall simulation/infiltration, weathering/tributary evolution and fluvial/aeolian interactions. Each project group were ultimately asked to present their results to staff during the fieldclass and students are now busy completing their final field reports. Staff and students also enjoyed an academic excursion to Death Valley.

The climax of the trip was an ascent of the Kelso Dunes - one of the largest dune fields in the Mojave Desert region.

The next GEO365 fieldclass (2010) is open to all students who have opted for GEO232 (Dryland Geomorphology) at Level 2. For more details contact Dr Rob Bryant