CLSTHES005 - The Nature and Geology of U.S. National Parks: From Arches to White Sands
Join Rice University professor of geology Cin-Ty Lee, Ph.D., for a virtual tour of the geology and biology of national parks across the United States. Explore how agents of erosion, such as wind, water and ice, shape landscapes by exploring the sand dunes of White Sands in New Mexico, the peculiar formations of natural stone arches in Utah, and the glacially carved valleys and lakes of Voyageurs National Park in upper Minnesota. Through California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park we see how volcanoes come together to build some of the mountains in the American West. This course also investigates how plate tectonics shaped the landscape of the southwestern U.S. in Saguaro National Park of Arizona’s Sonoran Desert. Through studying all these national parks, we learn how their unique flora and fauna and biodiversity have been shaped by geology and climate.
Content was previously recorded by the instructor (originally released March 1, 2022).
You may also be interested in Dr. Lee’s in-person/on-campus course, The Art of Observation: Seeing and Sketching With a Naturalist, March 20–April 24, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon. Other prerecorded/on-demand courses in The Nature and Geology of U.S. National Parks series: From Acadia to Zion, From Crater Lake to the Everglades, and From Glacier to the Grand Canyon.
Course Details
Cin-Ty Lee, Ph.D., is the Harry Carothers Wiess Professor of Geology in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences at Rice University. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University and his B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley. His research focuses on volcanoes, continent formation and the making of ore deposits. Dr. Lee is also a lifelong naturalist and has written numerous articles on the field identification of birds. He has dedicated his spare time to documenting the flora and fauna of Rice University, recording 228 species of birds and over 500 species of insects since 2002.
Online--Pre-recorded/on demand
This course will be delivered in a pre-recorded/on demand format. Registered participants will receive instructions to access the course page and may view the pre-recorded lectures in any order and as often as preferred. Check Section Notes for access availability.
- Arches National Park: Sculpting the landscape
- Congaree National Park: Journey into an old-growth forest
- Lassen Volcanic National Park: From volcanoes to mountains
- Saguaro National Park: A tour of life in the Sonoran Desert
- Voyageurs National Park: A land sculpted by glaciers
- White Sands National Park: Wind, water and desert dunes