PSLM74

Language:

ENGLISH
Textbooks:

Reference material will be mainly the presentations shown in class (In English) and made available throughout the course as well as recordings of the lossons.
Those who can understand Italian may refer to the book: Lezioni di geofisica applicata, di G. Santarato, N. Abu Zeid, e S. Bignardi. Editor Libreriauniversitaria.it, ISBN-10 : 8862926405, ISBN-13 : 978-8862926409
Alternatively, good english references are the following:
* Fundamentals Of Geophysics, by William Lowrie, editor: Cambridge
University Press. ISBN-13 978-0-511-35447-2; ISBN-10 0-511-35447-9
* An Introduction to Applied and Environmental Geophysics, By John M.
Reynolds; editor John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.; ISBN 978-0-471-48535-3
(hardback); 978-0-471-485360 (paperback)
Learning objectives:

The student will learn how physical concepts and phenomena can be exploited to probe the subsurface in a non-invasive way. It will include the theory and practical application of consolidated geophysical methods, including the instrumentation used, data acquisition methods, data processing and inversion; The student will also understand how these methods, developed on the ground, have been adapted for the exploration of other celestial bodies.
Prerequisite:

Ability to solve integrals in one dimension. Ability to calculate the partial derivatives of a function of several variables. Understand what a differential equation is. Programming skills in Matlab or Python are NOT required, but highly desirable.
Teaching methods:

In-person lessons. Online class is available for those students that cannot reach Italy in time of the first day of class. Demonstration of examples with simulated data; Real
data visualization and processing using open-source software.
Exam type:

The exam will comprise two parts.
Part one will consist of a multiple-choice written test designed to verify the acquired knowledge on a general level.
Students must successfully complete part 1 before accessing part 2. Part two will consist of an oral interview which will focus in depth on three specific topics. Full detail on the oral exam will be provided by the instructor in the “exam policy” document. Evaluation will be expressed as a fraction of 30.
Sostenibilità:
Further information:

Office hours will be established with the students after the start of the course.
The teacher leaves the possibility of office hours outside the established hours open. Any office hour meeting must be requested via email.

This course comprises the mathematical/physical basis, procedures, field applications, and instruments used by non-invasive geophysical methods, with special attention to the exploration of the solar system.
In particular, we will draw from the experience gained over decades of development of such methods for the exploration of our own planet to lay a path in which we will learn how such methods have been adapted (or could potentially be adapted) to gain insight on the physical properties of other extraterrestrial bodies.
Topics:
Structure, Terminology, and workflow of geophysical methods.
Gravity: Laws of gravitation; Earth gravity models; Spheroid and Geoid; Gravity measurements and Instrumentation; Correction to gravity measurements and computation of the gravity anomaly; The meaning of gravity anomaly; Isostasy; Interpretation of Gravimetric Maps; Gravity anomaly from bodies of irregular shape; Gravimetric survey beyond our planet.
Magnetism: Basic physical laws. Magnetic properties and behavior of solids. Magnetic Hysteresis; Residual Magnetization; Magnetic field from a dipole; The Earth magnetic field. Variations of the Earth's magnetic field;
Paleomagnetism; Magnetic measurement methods and Instrumentation; Sources of noise; Examples of magnetic surveys; Origins of the Earth's magnetic field; Magnetic surveys beyond our planet.
Electro-Magnetic Methods: Maxwell Equations; Low-Frequency E. M. methods; Time Domain Electromagnetics; Inversion Methods; High-Frequency E. M. Methods (Ground Penetrating Radar);
Electric Resistivity Methods: Basic principles; Vertical Electrical Soundings; Electrical Resistivity Tomography; Induced Polarization and Spectral Induced Polarization; Self-Potential;
Seismic Methods: Theory of Elasticity in a Continuum. Stress-Strain relation; Classification of seismic waves; Energy loss and Spherical divergence; Seismic waves reflection and refraction laws; Head Waves; “Dromocrone” of reflected and refracted waves. Surface waves;
Seismic Reflection Method; Seismic refraction Method; Surface waves methods: SPAC, SASW; MASW; SPAC; ESAC; Re.Mi; HVSR;
Fourier Series and Fourier Transform, Multy-dimensional Fourier Transforms; Convolution and Correlation; Signal sampling and aliasing. Pulse-Compression.
Data Inversion Theory: Introduction; Stochastic global Inversion methods; Local Inversion Methods; Ill-posed problems and regularization.

Structure, Terminology, and workflow of geophysical methods.
Gravity: Laws of gravitation; Earth gravity models; Spheroid and Geoid; Gravity measurements and Instrumentation; Correction to gravity measurements and computation of the gravity anomaly; The meaning of gravity anomaly; Isostasy; Interpretation of Gravimetric Maps; Gravity anomaly from bodies of irregular shape; Gravimetric survey beyond our planet.
Magnetism: Basic physical laws. Magnetic properties and behavior of solids. Magnetic Hysteresis; Residual Magnetization; Magnetic field from a dipole; The Earth magnetic field. Variations of the Earth's magnetic field;
Paleomagnetism; Magnetic measurement methods and Instrumentation; Sources of noise; Examples of magnetic surveys; Origins of the Earth's magnetic field; Magnetic surveys beyond our planet.
Electro-Magnetic Methods: Maxwell Equations; Low-Frequency E. M. methods; Time Domain Electromagnetics; Inversion Methods; High-Frequency E. M. Methods (Ground Penetrating Radar);
Electric Resistivity Methods: Basic principles; Vertical Electrical Soundings; Electrical Resistivity Tomography; Induced Polarization and Spectral Induced Polarization; Self-Potential;
Seismic Methods: Theory of Elasticity in a Continuum. Stress-Strain relation; Classification of seismic waves; Energy loss and Spherical divergence; Seismic waves reflection and refraction laws; Head Waves; “Dromocrone” of reflected and refracted waves. Surface waves;
Seismic Reflection Method; Seismic refraction Method; Surface waves methods: SPAC, SASW; MASW; SPAC; ESAC; Re.Mi; HVSR;
Fourier Series and Fourier Transform, Multy-dimensional Fourier Transforms; Convolution and Correlation; Signal sampling and aliasing. Pulse-Compression.
Data Inversion Theory: Introduction; Stochastic global Inversion methods; Local Inversion Methods; Ill-posed problems and regularization.