Research School of Earth Sciences

Research School of Earth Sciences
Name	Research School of Earth Sciences
Established	1945
Type	Research institute
City	Canberra
Country	Australia
Campus	Australian National University

Contents

Research School of Earth Sciences is a research institute within the Australian National University located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The school conducts research in geoscience disciplines and offers postgraduate teaching linked to national and international initiatives, with historical ties to institutions such as the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, the Geological Survey of New South Wales, the Bureau of Meteorology, and the CSIRO Division of Geodynamics. Its work intersects with projects involving the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program, the Global Seismographic Network, the International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior, and collaborations with universities like University of Cambridge, Stanford University, University of Oxford, and University of Tokyo.

History

The school traces origins to post‑World War II efforts linking the Australian National University foundation to initiatives from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, the Department of External Affairs (Australia), the Royal Society of London, and the Atomic Energy Commission to develop geophysical capacity for resource assessment and continental studies. Early research programs engaged with the International Geophysical Year, the Bureau of Mineral Resources, the Geological Society of Australia, and expeditions coordinated with the Australian Antarctic Division and the Scott Polar Research Institute. Over decades the school expanded through partnerships with the Australian Academy of Science, the National Science Foundation, the European Research Council, and national initiatives such as the Cooperative Research Centres Program and the National Computational Infrastructure.

Governance and administration draw on structures common to the Australian National University faculties and institutes, interacting with bodies like the Australian Research Council, the Chief Scientist of Australia, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and the Australian Space Agency for policy alignment and strategic funding. Leadership roles have reported to university executives and coordinated with advisory boards featuring representatives from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, the Geoscience Australia, the Minerals Council of Australia, and international advisory panels linked to the International Union of Geological Sciences and the International Lithosphere Programme.

Graduate and postgraduate programs emphasize training in areas associated with the International Seismological Centre, the International Ocean Discovery Program, the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program, and research themes common to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Meteorological Organization. Research topics span petrology linked to the Mineralogy Society of America, geochemistry with ties to the Geochemical Society, geophysics connected to the European Geosciences Union and the American Geophysical Union, tectonics associated with the Plate Tectonics paradigm and studies informed by data from the Global Positioning System and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment. Programs collaborate with specialized centers such as the John Curtin School of Medical Research on isotope geochemistry and with the ANU Research School of Physics on mineral physics.

Laboratory infrastructure includes mass spectrometry suites comparable to facilities at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, experimental petrology labs interfacing with instruments used by the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, and seismology arrays integrated into networks like the Global Seismographic Network and the Australian National Seismograph Network. Analytical capabilities align with standards of the US Geological Survey, the National Oceanography Centre, and the Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, supporting techniques endorsed by the International Association of Geoanalysts and the Royal Society of Chemistry for sample preparation and measurement.

Field programs span continental and marine expeditions coordinated with the Australian Antarctic Division, the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, the International Ocean Discovery Program, and regional surveys in partnership with the Geological Survey of Western Australia, the Geological Survey of South Australia, and the New Zealand Geological Survey. The school’s fieldwork has participated in multinational projects alongside teams from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, and the Monash University Earth Science groups to investigate topics from reef systems studied with researchers from the James Cook University to crustal studies with collaborators at the University of California, Berkeley.

Longstanding collaborations include joint projects with Geoscience Australia, cooperative agreements with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, and international partnerships with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the European Space Agency, the Japan Agency for Marine‑Earth Science and Technology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Funding and project partnerships have involved the Australian Research Council, the National Science Foundation, the European Research Council, industry partners such as the BHP Group, Rio Tinto Group, and consultancy links with firms including Woodside Petroleum and Chevron Corporation for applied research and training.