PhD in Geochemistry - Atmospheric Chemistry in Pasadena United States | California Institute of Technology

Geochemistry examines the chemical makeup and changes in Earth's structure, encompassing its atmosphere, water bodies, crust, mantle, core, and celestial objects like meteorites, comets, planets, the sun, and faraway stars. This field focuses on how elements move and are distributed across Earth and its atmospheric layers. Originally descriptive, geochemistry has progressed to investigate the underlying causes of observed phenomena. Modern geochemistry branches into specialized areas such as water-based geochemistry, space chemistry, non-organic geochemistry, isotopic studies, carbon-based geochemistry, and minor-element analysis. Given that most geological events involve chemical changes, geochemical insights help interpret processes across various earth science disciplines. At Caltech GPS, researchers have applied geochemical techniques since 1952 to map element distributions in Earth and space, create dating methods for planetary events, analyze materials from both terrestrial and cosmic sources, and investigate chemical interactions within Earth's interior, surface, and throughout the solar system.