Topics Master in Earth Sciences ETH

Master's thesis topics on research group websites

Engineering Geology

Master's thesis topics in SiROP

Many research groups in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences advertise Master's theses through the external page student research project website SiROP.

The feed below shows a selection of currently available projects.

Himalayan firn: vulnerability to climate changes at Ganchempo, Nepal

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Due to the concurrent ablation and accumulation seasons, Himalayan glaciers may be particularly vulnerable to temperature increases. Here, we use measurements from a firn core in Nepal to constrain meteorology and assess the glacier’s future sensitivity to climate warming.

Keywords

Glaciology, energy-balance modelling, firn

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-05-20 , Earliest start: 2026-07-01 , Latest end: 2027-07-01

Applications limited to ETH Zurich , EPFL - Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research , University of Berne , University of Fribourg , University of Zurich , University of Lausanne

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Farinotti Daniel , Miles Evan

Topics Earth Sciences

Deciphering firn densification from published profiles

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Converting measurements of glacier volume change to mass change remains a major challenge in glaciology, as firn areas of glaciers can change in density. Here, we gather key literature datasets of firn density and demonstrate their utility for modelling firn and constraining these conversions.

Keywords

Glaciology, firn densification, data mining

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-05-20 , Earliest start: 2026-07-01 , Latest end: 2027-07-01

Applications limited to EPFL - Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , ETH Zurich , Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research , University of Berne , University of Fribourg , University of Geneva , University of Lausanne , University of Zurich

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Huss Matthias , Farinotti Daniel , Miles Evan

Topics Earth Sciences

Automating the detection of glacier area outlines from topographic surface elevation change

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Glaciers advance and retreat due to climate forcing, yet quantifying their area over time remains challenging. Time series of surface elevation change enable tracking glacier extents using computer vision and machine learning techniques. A robust framework is needed to evaluate various approaches.

Keywords

Glaciology, glacier outlines, computer vision, machine learning, remote sensing

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-05-20 , Earliest start: 2026-07-01 , Latest end: 2027-07-01

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Farinotti Daniel , Miles Evan , Knuth Friedrich

Topics Earth Sciences

Producing multitemporal glacier extents from multispectral data across Switzerland

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Glaciers are losing mass and retreating globally, but tracking their area over time is challenging. Manual and deep learning approaches struggle to identify debris-covered ice, and high-quality outlines are inconsistent in time between regions. Here, we develop a transient data-driven approach.

Keywords

Glaciology, glacier segmentation, remote sensing, machine learning

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-05-20 , Earliest start: 2026-07-01 , Latest end: 2027-07-01

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Wulf Hendrik , Knuth Friedrich , Farinotti Daniel , Miles Evan

Topics Earth Sciences

Can we use ground-based gravity measurements to constrain ice thickness of large, fast flowing and temperate glaciers?

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

This master thesis investigates whether ground-based gravimetry, combined with GPR observations and inverse modeling, can improve glacier ice-thickness estimates in large, fast-flowing glaciers. Using newly acquired gravity measurements from Aletschgletscher (Swiss Alps), the project will develop and test 3D inversion workflows to reconstruct glacier bedrock topography and assess the potential of gravimetry for future field campaings in remote mountain regions

Keywords

Gravimetry, Inversion, Applied Geophysics, Glaciology

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Ice thickness is a key variable for understanding glacier dynamics, future glacier response to climate change, and freshwater availability. Yet, among the world’s ice masses, large and fast-flowing temperate glaciers remain particularly challenging environments for measuring ice thickness. Conventional methods such as ground-penetrating radar (GPR) often fail in deep temperate ice because of strong signal attenuation, while seismic surveys are logistically demanding and require heavy field equipment. Ground-based gravimetry is an interesting alternative because of the lightweight instrumentation and the strong density contrast between ice and bedrock, but the method remains challenging due to multiple sources of uncertainty and the inherent non-uniqueness of gravity inversions. This master thesis will investigate whether lightweight ground-based gravity measurements, combined with GPR observations and inverse modeling, can improve estimates of glacier ice thickness. The project focuses on Aletschgletscher (Swiss Alps), where ground-based gravity measurements were acquired for the first time in May 2026. Because the ice thickness at Aletschgletscher is relatively well constrained from previous geophysical surveys, this glacier provides an ideal test site to evaluate the performance of gravimetry-based ice-thickness inversions. The research work will consist of processing these gravity data and performing 3D inversions using state-of-the-art open-source software to reconstruct glacier bedrock topography and ice thickness. Existing GPR measurements will then be progressively integrated as constraints within the inversion framework to assess how much ground-truth information is required for gravimetry to provide reliable ice-thickness estimates. Although the thesis relies on existing datasets, there is a possibility for additional fieldwork at Aletschgletscher. The ultimate goal of the thesis is to establish a proof of concept for combining ground-based gravimetry, GPR, and inverse modeling for future glacier field campaigns in remote mountain regions where ice thickness remains poorly constrained.

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-05-14 , Earliest start: 2026-07-01 , Latest end: 2027-04-15

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Ogier Christophe

Topics Earth Sciences

AI-powered Earthquake Data Denoising

Seismology and Geodynamics

Seismologists use earthquake recordings to monitor seismic activity, but these recordings are often mixed with noise from the environment, making it challenging to automatically process earthquake signals. This project focuses on using deep learning techniques to remove noise from earthquake recordings. By building on existing methods and introducing new ideas, the goal is to create a reliable tool that makes earthquake monitoring more accurate and efficient.

Keywords

Earthquake monitoring, Deep Learning, AI, Denoising, Signal Processing, High-Performance-Computing, Seismology

Labels

Master Thesis

PLEASE LOG IN TO SEE DESCRIPTION

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-04-28 , Earliest start: 2026-05-01

Applications limited to Department of Physics , Department of Mathematics , Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering , Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences , ETH Competence Center - ETH AI Center , Swiss Data Science Center - ETHZ , Department of Computer Science , IDEA League

Organization Seismology and Geodynamics

Hosts Dahmen Nikolaj , Meier Men-Andrin

Topics Information, Computing and Communication Sciences , Earth Sciences

Investigating global ice temperatures

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

This project aims to investigate a global database of glacier temperatures with the aim of improving our understanding of ice temperature distributions in glaciers and their connection with climate.

Labels

Master Thesis

Description

Goal

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-04-15

Applications limited to ETH Zurich

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Jacquemart Mylène

Topics Earth Sciences

Analyzing ice avalanche dynamics from long-term monitoring data

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

The goal of this project is to analyze operational monitoring data (camera and ground based radar data) of avalanching glaciers in order to assess shifts in ice avalanche activity that may be related to climatic changes.

Keywords

glaciers, ice avalanches, hazards, risk, monitoring, early warming, climate change

Labels

Master Thesis , ETH Zurich (ETHZ)

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-04-15

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Jacquemart Mylène

Topics Earth Sciences

High-mountain hazards in the Swiss Alps

Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

This project aims to identify and analyze changes in the Swiss Alps that relate to geologic or glaciologic hazards by comparing large-scale elevation datasets.

Keywords

glaciers, hazards, risk, mass movements, geology, rockfall, rock avalanche, permafrost

Labels

Master Thesis , ETH Zurich (ETHZ)

Description

Goal

Contact Details

More information

Open this project...

Published since: 2026-04-15

Organization Glaciology (Prof. Farinotti)

Hosts Jacquemart Mylène

Topics Engineering and Technology , Earth Sciences