Facilities

Denver and Front Range Environs

Probably the most unique and valuable resource is the geographic setting.  The city of Denver itself and the Front Range create an ideal setting for studying geography, geology, and environmental sciences. CU in the City is an appropriate descriptor for the wide-range of opportunities Denver provides for considering urban form and the urban-rural interface.  The city is not the only point of teaching and research interest in the area, however.  The superbly exposed geology and geomorphology of the Colorado Front Range is accessible by a 30-minute drive from campus.  Noteworthy examples of the geological and geographical environment are (1) the Colorado Mineral Belt (e.g., Climax, Cripple Creek, Leadville, Central City ), which attracted the first miners and prospectors to the region in the 1850's, (2) classic dinosaur fossil and trackway localities which have recently been developed into the splendid "Dinosaur Ridge" outdoor public display, under the leadership of Professor Martin Lockley,  (3) glacial geology in Rocky Mountain National Park and throughout the Front Range above 9000 foot elevations, (4) classic Laramide geologic structures, which are typical of the Colorado and Wyoming Rockies, but very different from structures in the Canadian Rockies, and only rarely found in other mountain belts of the world.  Universities from all over the country bring students to the Front Range for geology and geography field courses.

Facility for Advanced Spatial Technology (FAST Lab)

115 CU Building, 1250 14th Street, Denver, CO

The Department of Geography, Geology, and Environmental Sciences, along with Engineering and Urban and Regional Planning, forms the core of GIS activity on the University of Colorado at Denver campus.  This multidisciplinary laboratory provides state-of-the-art GIScience technology for teaching and research. FAST Lab equipment was purchased through the Instructional Technology Initiative (ITI) and consists of 40 new workstations, color printers and plotter, system server, network access, and computer projection systems. The lab has secured site licenses for the most advanced GIS, image processing and database management software available in the industry.  Visit GIS at UCD for more information.

Geology Laboratories

There are four laboratories dedicated to undergraduate instruction in physical geology, mineralogy, petrology, paleontology, sedimentation and stratigraphy, and optical mineralogy.  Equipment in these labs includes complete collections of minerals, rocks and fossils from many parts of the world, Bausch & Lomb sterozoom binocular microscopes and Nikon petrographic microscopes.  In addition we have a small lab dedicated to undergraduate instruction in x-ray diffraction techniques, equipped with a computer automated Siemans D-5000 diffractometer.