WKU Geological Sciences - Empower Earth’s Future with Smart Geology

09/08/2026

Environmental, Earth, and Sustainability Sciences (EESS) Student Spotlight: Maggie Gnann -

This summer, EESS major Maggie Gnann spent three weeks exploring restoration ecology across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem through a field course offered by the Wild Rockies Field Institute.

During the course, Maggie learned a variety of geological landforms and ecological restoration techniques while examining their ethical challenges and historical contexts. She also gained hands-on experience working at ranches, watersheds, wildlife refuges, and Yellowstone National Park.

09/01/2026

We are back with Season 3 - Episode 1 of the Geological Sciences Podcast!

Title: Blue-Sky Floods - When the Mountain, Not the Weather, Breaks

Description: No rain. No earthquake. No rising river – just a clear Himalayan morning, and then a wall of water, rock and ice that ran a hundred kilometers down the Nepal–China border. We explore the geology behind the blue-sky flood: why a mountain can let go in perfect weather, how a warming climate is loosening the world's high slopes, why flood-warning systems built to watch rain and rivers never saw it coming – and why the same physics could put a wave in a river valley in Alaska or Appalachia.

🎧 Listen here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEIvrwOhQfW57jAea6MDHi7_HvTdCSJ5A

06/27/2026

We are back with Season 2 - last Episode 7 of the Geological Sciences Podcast!
- "Tale of Two T. rexes — One Ruled the Land, One Ruled the Sea."

🎧 Listen to any of your favorite channels:
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRdLQUuOp5w&list=PLEIvrwOhQfW57jAea6MDHi7_HvTdCSJ5A&index=1

-Amazon Music
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1d26dea6-e583-4e9c-9900-2cb4aff4f51b/decoding-the-earth

-Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/4Ki1uHLKxd8146eLpioSaD

-Apple Music
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoding-the-earth/id1873856518

05/09/2026

We are so proud of your successful completion of your degrees. Your hard work, dedication, field experiences, research, and perseverance have brought you to this exciting milestone.

Please join us in congratulating:
-Charlie Lowman: Geological Sciences
-Maysn Hughes: Geological Sciences
-Mackenzie Senig: Geological Sciences
-Mykah Carden: Geological Sciences
-Kieran Heinz: Geological Sciences and ESGS
-Luke Marcum: Geological Sciences and Meteorology
-Racheal Farmer: Geological Sciences and ESGS

We also proudly congratulate our graduate teaching assistants:

-Victor Aham: M.S. in Geoscience
-Samir Pahari: M.S. in Geoscience

We are excited to see where your next adventures take you. Once a Hilltopper, always a Hilltopper!

04/22/2026

Congratulations to Natalie Strader for receiving a $3,000 AAPG Foundation Field Camp Scholarship in support of her University of St Andrews Geology field camp in Scotland this summer!
And the fun does not stop there, Natalie will also be heading to the field with some awesome gear, including a Carhartt backpack, rock hammer, field book, grain size card, T-shirts, and more, as a gift from this foundation. Talk about being field-camp ready in style! We are proud to see Natalie recognized with this opportunity!

04/13/2026

Proud of our EEAS geology and geoscience graduate and undergraduate students for presenting their research at the 56th WKU Student Scholar Showcase on April 11, 2026. Thank you for representing our program so well and sharing your hard work with the WKU community!

04/08/2026

Drakes Creek Sed-Strat Fieldtrip -

Our students spent the day observing sediments and stratigraphic relationships in a modern fluvial system, led by Prof. Royhan Gani with graduate TAs Victor Aham and Samir Pahari. They examined sedimentation patterns, modern river depositional environments, vertical measured sections, floodplains, point bars, chute channels, sedimentary structures, and river morphology, connecting classroom concepts to real-world geology while sharpening their field-note skills. Hands-on learning is one of the best parts of Geological Sciences!

03/30/2026

Did you know South Central Kentucky was once covered by a warm, shallow sea? The fossils preserved in our limestone, from crinoids to ancient sharks, reveal an incredible marine past beneath our feet. These fossils truly bring Kentucky’s deep history to life. We love seeing local geology featured in the news and sharing the science behind Kentucky’s amazing fossil record. Watch geology professor Dr. Royhan Gani discuss this fascinating story in the news -

https://www.wbko.com/2026/03/16/kentucky-fossils-ancient-sea-once-covered-south-central-region-experts-say/

Limestone cliffs and cave systems hold clues to a prehistoric ocean.

03/25/2026

WKU Geological Sciences is proud to celebrate one of our esteemed alumni Tim Ford (B.S. Geology, 1982). Tim and Sarah Ford have made a lasting impact on the Hill through their support of the new Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse. We love seeing our geology alumni make such a meaningful difference at WKU! Thank you!

For more information visit-
https://www.wku.edu/news/articles/index.php?view=article&articleid=12718

03/12/2026

Maysn Hughes and Owen Blaylock presented this week at the GSA Triple Joint Annual Section Meeting in Memphis, Tennessee! Maysn, with coauthor Charlie Lowman, and Owen, with coauthor Sujan Adhikari, presented part of their initial research results from Dr. Nahid Gani’s CLIMBS NSF EPSCoR URE program landslides in Appalachian Kentucky and RA program Kentucky earthquake damage model grant-funded projects. We are proud of their hard work and excited to see these research projects continue to grow!