Field seminar within the Geography Bachelor programme at RWTH Aachen University.

Newly introduced course; the syllabus had to be created from scratch. Implemention as an interactive field excursion filled with practical tasks (mapping, measuring, calculating) and experiments, many of which had to be self­designed live by the students.

Learning aims

Second­semester students are introduced to field methods, bringing theoretical subject matter from preceding lectures to practice.

Contents

• Introduction to geomorphological field work
• Orientation and measurements with compass and GPS
• Drilling sediment cores with a Cobra device
• Different approaches to measure runoff
• Geomorphological mapping basics
• Soil profile sampling (Puerckhauer)
• Geodetic measurements with a Tachymeter
• Slope and valley profiles