GEO5682 – Azerbaijan Summer School: Mud Volcanism and Petroleum Systems
Course description
Course content
Students will receive a complete overview of fluid migration mechanisms including those related to hydrothermal activity or occurring in purely sedimentary domains (i.e. from a source rock, reservoir, and the surface manifestation of degassing) that may result in violent clastic eruptions. These phenomena represent the second largest natural source of methane emission in the atmosphere and remain still poorly constrained and investigated. On the last day, students present their reports and achievements during a dedicated workshop. A final report is among the requirements for the students attending the school.
This course is organized in cooperation with the HOTMUD partners of the Moscow State University and the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS). The School is open for bachelor's students, master's students, PhD candidates and scientists/specialists interested to learn more about the topic of sedimentary volcanism, related petroleum systems, and atmosphere degassing. More than 40 participants coming from 13 different Institutes and 10 different countries attended the last Azerbaijan Summer School.
The course includes ~10 initial lectures covering the general aspects of mud volcanism, their relationship to petroleum systems and atmosphere gas release, a description of the main tectonic settings, rheology and mechanisms of the mud flows, the coupling of mud volcanism and seismicity, new areas of exploration for mud volcanism, hybrid systems on Earth, and extra-planetary sedimentary volcanism and laboratory simulations. This initial workshop (hosted by ANAS) is usually attended by a broad audience and is followed by 4 days of lectures and practical field exercises performed directly on the field at various sites in the region around Baku.
Among other topics, highlights include tectonic control on the mud volcano systems, morphologies of the mud flows, sedimentary basins and petroleum systems. Field observations are compared with satellite imagery, and various techniques for fluid sampling and data collection (e.g. flux measurement, seismometry) are introduced with practical exercises directly on the field.
Learning outcome
Students and scientists will learn about sedimentary volcanism, related petroleum systems, and atmosphere degassing. For students that plan to have projects related to these topics, it is possible to organize additional days of fieldwork to collect data and observations. The data collected are then processed for further laboratory analyses in various Institutes and may be used by students for their bachelor's, master's and PhD projects.
Admission to the course
Students admitted at UiO must apply for courses in Studentweb. Students enrolled in other master's degree programmes can, on application, be admitted to the course if this is cleared by their own study programme.
In addition to applying through Studentweb, you must send your CV and motivation letter by 15 July to adriano.mazzini@geo.uio.no.
Nordic citizens and applicants residing in the Nordic countries may apply to take this course as a single course student.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures for international applicants.
Priority: Since this course is part of a Research and Education Programme, priority will be given to the students that intend to use the collected data for their individual projects.
The number of study places will vary. Admission takes place after individual application. When more applications than available seats, a ranking of applicants will be based on?grades.
Formal prerequisite knowledge
The course includes mandatory fieldwork. A health-and-safety course for safety in the field must be passed before you can participate in this:
Overlapping courses
- 5 credits overlap with GEO9682 – Azerbaijan Summer School: Mud Volcanism and Petroleum Systems.
Teaching
- Field guide will be provided to participants with instructions.
- 1-day seminars (Auditorium Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences)
- 4 days of field lecturing
- Final presentations from the students on field activities
- Submit a written report of activities and learnings achieved during the summer school
- Handling of a written essay with a review of literature on a topic of interest from the student related to summer school activities
General information about excursions at the Department of Geosciences
As the teaching involves laboratory and/or fieldwork, you should consider taking out a separate travel and personal risk insurance. Read about your insurance coverage as a student.
Examination
Field activities and oral presentation: These will be the evaluations of the performance during the course activities and the oral presentation provided at the end of the course.
Field report: This is a written report of the field activities, which is to be submitted after the end of the course.
Attendance on the field course / excursion is obligatory.
It will also be counted as one of the three attempts to sit the exam for this course if you sit the exam for the following course:
Language of examination
The examination text is given in English, and you submit your response in English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a pass/fail scale. Read more about?the grading system.
Resit an examination
Students who can document a valid reason for absence from the regular examination are?offered a postponed examination at the beginning of the next semester.
Re-scheduled examinations are not offered to students who withdraw during, or did not pass, the original examination.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.