Facilities

  • Exterior photograph of Rood Hall

    Rood Hall is home to the Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences. Rood Hall is also home to the Schmaltz Museum, several faculty laboratories and a computer lab. Just outside is the newly added rock garden.

  • Photograph of the exterior of Haenicke Hall

    Haenicke Hall houses most of our faculty laboratories, such as the: Aqueous Biogeochemistry Laboratory, Carbonate Petrology and Characterization Laboratory, Economic Geology Laboratory, Geomicrobiology Laboratory and Geotechnical Laboratory.

  • Photograph of the exterior of Wood Hall

    Wood Hall also facilitates lectures, lab classes, and Dr. Sultan’s Remote Sensing Laboratory.

  • Photograph of the exterior of MGRRE

    MGRRE is the definitive source of subsurface geological materials. It supports faculty, student and industry research with its extensive collections, data archives, state of the art facilities and knowledgeable research staff.  

  • Photograph of the Asylum Lake Preserve

    WMU’s Asylum Lake Preserve is an invaluable research site for our entire department. It is particularly useful, however, for the Hydrogeology Field Course and Graduate Certificate in Applied Hydrogeology program.

The Western Michigan University Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences maintains the following facilities to support research and education.

Asylum Lake Research and Training Site

The Asylum Lake Research and Training Site was developed by the Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences at the Asylum Lake property for course work and advanced graduate study. Most of the geophysical tests, field work and training for the Hydrogeology Field Course is conducted at this site.

Carbonate Petrology and Characterization Laboratory

The Carbonate Petrology and Characterization Laboratory is a collaborative research facility that is directed by Dr. Stephen Kaczmarek. The CPCL, located in Haenicke Hall, is equipped with various laboratory and analytical instruments purposed with investigating the origin and evolution of carbonate rocks and sediments.

Carbonate Sedimentology Laboratory

The Carbonate Sedimentology Laboratory, directed by Dr. William Harrison, is located within the Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education. This lab is comprised of high-end research materials and a student library.

Earth Science Remote Sensing Laboratory

The Earth Science Remote Sensing Laboratory is located in Wood Hall and is supervised by Dr. Mohamed Sultan.

Michigan Geological Repository for Research and Education

MGRRE, directed by Dr. William Harrison, is the most comprehensive archive of geological samples and data in the state of Michigan.

Near-surface Geophysics Laboratory

The Near-surface Geophysics Laboratory, equipped with high-end research equipment needed for conducting geophysical research, is supervised by Dr. Mine Dogan

Rood Hall Rock Garden

The Rood Hall rock garden has become a fixture for orientation tours and for good reason. The Rood Hall rock garden is not just a great place to sit at a picnic table in the shade to relax, catch up on reading or prepare for an exam; the rock garden also features a wide variety of rocks for amateurs and experts alike to explore.

Schmaltz Geology Museum AND DINOSAUR PARK

The Lloyd J. Schmaltz Geology and Mineral Museum is located on the first floor of Rood Hall and has an impressive display of rocks, minerals and fossils. The Dinosaur Park, located on the lawn adjacent to Rood Hall and the Lee Honors College, houses six scale replicas of dinosaurs. Both are free and open to the public. 

Stable Isotope Laboratory

The Stable Isotope Laboratory, equipped with advanced equipment for isotope research, is supervised by Dr. R.V. Krishnamurthy.