Our department

  The Earth was born approximately 4.6 billion years ago. If we were to represent this vast timespan as a single calendar year, humanity would have appeared only around sunset on New Year’s Eve. Furthermore, human activities since the Industrial Revolution amount to just a little more than a single second on this scale—yet in that fleeting moment, we have generated serious environmental problems for our planet.
 However, taking a step back, we must ask: What is it that society is truly concerned about? Research into Earth science reveals that, for instance, there were periods of extreme global warming from approximately 2 billion to 700 million years ago. So how does the global warming we are facing today differ from warming episodes in Earth’s past? What should be considered a human-caused issue from the perspective of the Earth itself?

 To identify the true challenges facing the planet and steps we can take toward their resolution, we must understand the Earth itself. Earth science is key to addressing these questions. Countless events that occurred over Earth’s vast history—even long before the emergence of humankind—are recorded in various forms in rocks and geological strata. Earth science is a discipline full of wonder and discovery, devoted to deciphering the records preserved in rocks and strata to uncover the causes and processes of events throughout Earth’s history. It integrates diverse fields, including geology, chemistry, and physics, to explore a wide range of phenomena, from the atomic scale to the scale of planetary formation.

 Our major goal is to cultivate professionals with strong expertise and a global perspective. Approximately 40 students graduate from the department each year. Graduates pursue careers in a wide range of fields, including university faculty positions, teaching at high schools and junior high schools, and Earth science-related industries such as mining, resources, construction, and disaster prevention, as well as sectors like information and communications, manufacturing, commerce, and finance.

 The faculty members of the department specialize in a wide range of fields focused on Earth materials, including geology, sedimentology, paleontology, structural geology, petrology, volcanology, mineralogy, geochemistry, and satellite observation. These faculty members are committed to educating students and closely supervising student research activities, as well as playing active roles in relevant academic societies. Undergraduate students and graduate students conduct their research directly under the guidance of department professors, achieving significant results each year. Moreover, many graduates have received awards from relevant academic societies. The relationship between faculty and students is close, creating a vibrant and familial atmosphere within the department.

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