SHAPING THE SURFACE: INTEGRATING GEOLOGICAL AND PLANETARY SCIENCES IN A NEW VIRTUAL FIELD EXPERIENCE

Fieldwork is essential for undergraduate geosciences education, and Virtual Field Experiences (VFEs) effectively integrate field learning into geology courses when traditional field trips are impractical. Arizona State University’s (ASU) Center for Education through Exploration excels in developing immersive VFEs using spherical imagery to leverage digital advantages and promote authentic scientific inquiry and engaging narratives. Additionally, despite ASU's considerable planetary science expertise, this topic is not strongly emphasized by its undergraduate programs. A VFE incorporating planetary science learning outcomes, skills, and perspectives would help address this gap.

This project addressed the question, "How can VFEs be tailored to meet the needs of faculty in undergraduate planetary science and geoscience courses?" Our work approached this by first analyzing introductory course syllabi to identify common learning themes and conducting faculty interviews to identify student challenges. Preliminary findings revealed that students struggle with developing three dimensional thinking skills and grasping the scale of geologic time and the universe. Interviewees suggested that VFEs using Earth analog sites for making planetary interpretations at varying scales could effectively bridge this gap. Guided by the UFERN Model and informed by these findings, a new VFE is being developed that incorporates content from ASU's annual planetary geology field trip to explore the four universal planetary surface processes: impact cratering, tectonics, gradation, and volcanism. Students will analyze representative Northern Arizona analog sites using spherical imagery and remote sensing, then apply their insights to global imagery from Earth, Mars, Mercury, and Venus. This immersive experience, titled “Shaping the Surface”, will not only highlight these geologic processes, but also introduces students to diverse scientific questions and viewpoints from both geological and planetary science.

Ongoing research will further refine the VFE’s pedagogical components by adding immersive storylines and interactive interviews to enhance engagement. Planned user testing in the coming year will finalize the VFE for broader implementation and evaluate its impact on student outcomes in planetary and geological sciences.