The program is divided into three research teams, which include professors from the old Departments of Geology, Mathematics, Plant Biology and Physics, who investigate different aspects of Nature, but whose methodology is adjusted to the scientific method. The areas of knowledge integrated by the program are:
1.- Environmental geology and paleontology.
Areas of External Geodynamics, Paleontology, Stratigraphy and Edaphology. It includes studies of Environmental and Paleoenvironmental Geology, Paleontology, Geomorphology, Natural Hazards, Geology and Landscape, Natural Resources, Soil and Water Management, Planetary Geology, Hydrology. These studies include some of great socioeconomic interest as evidenced by the large number of contracts that this group has obtained throughout its history.
2.- Mathematics and Physics.
This research team is organized in two lines: The Mathematics line includes the areas of Algebraic Geometry, Differential Geometry, Computational Geometry, Differential Algebra, and Construction of algorithms of great computational interest. It also includes studies of difference equations, functional equations and differential equations with special attention to biomathematical problems.
The Physics line includes studies on Climate, Energy and Environmental Risk. Several areas of Applied Physics are included here to study different aspects of Planet Earth. Among them the Meteorology of the Earth and the Space, the Climatology, the Energetics and the Remote Sensing. It also includes areas that provide tools for previous studies, such as numerical models, dynamic systems theory, and statistics. It is a current investigation, with impact and social interest.
3.- Mycology and Environmental Geobotany It includes the Taxonomy and Ecology of diverse fungi, applications of Molecular Biology to the system of fungi, the study of protected areas and red lists of fungi and the application of fungi to conservation and forestry.
In addition, the part of Environmental Geobotany includes investigations of conservation and plant diversity, Botanical Biogeography and Plant Ecology, and applications in forestry, and therapeutic activity.
As stated, the Doctorate in Science program allows the traditional development of research separately, in each of the research lines, but also, if coordinated research is deemed appropriate. In fact, there is already interaction between the Geology research team and the research line “Climates, Energy and Environmental Risk (CERA)” of the “Mathematics and Physics” research team, in the section on natural risks, and with some of the the investigations that are carried out in Environmental Geobotany (in the question of the effect of Climate Change on Plants and Fungi).