Sub-branches of Physical Geography

Physical geography is one of the two primary branches of geography.  The other primary branch of geography is human geography.

Listed here are sub-branches or sub-fields of physical geography.  

These sub-fields of physical geography study processes and patterns in the natural environment ranging from the oceans to physical land to the atmosphere.  Physical Geography studies the all processes and pattern that can be consider natural on the Earth’s surface.

Five main sub-fields of geography

Sub-fields in Physical Geography are numerous but they can be broadly categorized into five which are:

• Biogeography ( study of plant and animal life and processes)
• Climatology (study of long term weather called climate and its effects on life)
• Geomorphology (earth’s form and structure)
• Hydrology (study of all forms of water underground, over-ground and in the cloud)
• Pedology ( the study of soils)

Let’s take a look at some of these broad categories as well as some other categories of physical geography.

Biogeography

Animals and plants on Earth are usually distributed in specific patterns and biogeography is the discipline that is involved in this study. Biogeography studies the distribution of biological species and the geographic patterns that are a result.

This field can be further broken down into biogeography related to islands, paleobiogeography, phylogeography, zoogeography, and phytogeography. 

Climatology

Geographers in this branch of geography are usually concerned with the investigation of the weather patterns of the Earth and the way in which they affect the climate as a result.

Activities that are taking place within the atmosphere of the Earth are also studied in this discipline.

Climatologists study the climate as it is made up by weather conditions throughout history. This area of study can involve local climate science as well as global, or macro, climate changes.

Climatologists can choose to study specific periods of time in history to focus their research or choose a location to further develop their research. 

Some climatology topics:

• North American Monsoon
• Geography of Hailstorms in the United States
• As the Ozone Layer Recovers it is Changing Wind Patterns

Coastal Geography

Coastal geography focuses on areas where water meets land. Coastal weathering, or the impact of the ocean on these coastal environments, involves very unique processes.

This field involves the study of wave action, sediment movement, erosion, as well as how humans have altered coastlines. 

Coastal geography topics:

• 53% of U.S. Ocean, Coastal, and Great Lakes Waters are Unmapped
• Coastal Ice Loss is Outpacing Mainland Ice Gains on Both Antarctica and Greenland
• Barrier Islands in the United States

Environmental Geography

Environmental geography focuses on studying the interactions and impacts between humans and the natural world.

Environmental geography links aspects of human geography with physical geography.

Environmental geography topics:

• What is the Environmental Insights Explorer (EIE) Tool?
• Geography and Environmental Inequality
• How Light Pollution Affects People and the Environment

Geomorphology

Geomorphology is the study of Earth’s landforms, terrain, and the processes that guide these changes. The landforms on Earth usually develop in interesting ways, stemming from tectonic movement and climatic influences. There are numerous processes that normally lead to the eventual vanishing of these landforms.

For instance, erosion is a major part of this field, as it has been discovered to be a major factor that influences the disappearance of landforms.

Geomorphology seeks to understand past landforms and what happened to them in order to make predictions about the future through field observations, physical experiments, and modeling. 

Geomorphology topics

• The Importance of Geomorphology for Physical Geographers
• How Archaeologists and Geomorphologists Can Work Together to Understand the Quaternary

Glaciology

Glaciology is a field of geography that studies ice sheets and glaciers on Earth’s surface.

Glaciers are studied by how they impact a landscape as they move or melt, as well as how ice sheets and their makeup impact climate studies. Glacial geology and snow hydrology are two subsets of glaciology. 

Glaciology Topics

• Study: Glacial Lakes are Increasing in Volume Worldwide due to Glacier Melt
• Fastest Thinning Glacier
• Himalayan Glacier Melt Mapped By Analyzing Old Spy Photographs

Hydrology

The study of hydraulics concerns the amount of quality of water and its movement across the Earth’s surfaces.

The most basic understanding of hydrology comes down to what we know as the water cycle, or the hydrological cycle.

Hydrology can be split into researchers who study rivers (the study of rivers is called potamology), lakes, aquifers, and glaciers (although glaciology as a field goes much more in-depth).  

Hydrology Topics

• Water on Earth
• 53% of U.S. Ocean, Coastal, and Great Lakes Waters are Unmapped
• Tonle Sap Lake – One of the World’s Most Productive Freshwater Ecosystems

Landscape Ecology

Landscape ecology blends ecology and geography to show ecological processes.

Researchers in this field could use physical geographic evidence showing the flow of energy, material, and people to indicate changes in ecological landscapes.

Landscape Ecology Topics

• How Hydropower is Changing the Balkan Landscape
• Using Repeat Photography to Capture Landscape Change
• More Frequent and Intense Tropical Storms Can Change the Geography and Ecology of Coastlines

Lithology

Lithology is the study of the physical composition of rocks. Using visual methods including core samples and microscopes, lithologists can determine the color, texture, grain, and composition of rock samples.

Lithology allows researchers to map and correlate rock types between different locations. 

Lithology Topics

• Geology Quick Facts for Each U.S. State
• Physical and Chemical Weathering of Rocks
• Plateaus in Geography

Meteorology

Meteorology studies the atmosphere of the Earth as it relates to weather processes and predicting future weather patterns.

Meteorology concerns observable weather events. 

Meteorology Topics

• Fujiwhara Effect: When One Storm Absorbs Another
• What is a Medicane?
• North American Monsoon

Oceanography

The study of the world’s oceans and seas is known as oceanography. Oceanographers study marine biology and organisms, currents, waves, and the movement of water, as well as the physical makeup of sea floors.

Oceanographers seek to blend these complex areas of study into the field for a comprehensive view of the world’s oceans. 

Oceanography Topics

• How Ocean Currents Move Pollution Around the World
• How Much Would the Ocean Rise if Everyone Sat in it?
• How Many Oceans are There in the World?

Orology

Orology is the study of mountains and their formation. Sub-branches of this field of study include the human impacts on mountainous landscapes as well as elevation-based mountain studies.

Climate studies regarding mountains, such as the rain shadow effect, are part of this field. 

Orology Topics

• The Highest 11 Mountains in the United States
• Seven Summits: The Tallest Mountain on Each Continent
• Mountaintop Removal Mining and Flash Floods in West Virginia

Paleogeography

Paleogeography studies material that has been preserved in the soil record, or stratigraphic record, of Earth’s crust. This allows scientists to discover when certain species are thought to have lived.

Additionally, scientists can determine the past position of Earth’s continents based on palaeographic finds.

Paleogeography Topics

• Geography and Paleoclimate

Quaternary Science

This is a specific field of study that concerns the Quaternary period, or the last 2.6 million years of Earth’s history.

The Quaternary period has two epochs. The Pleistocene which last from 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago and the Holocene which spans from the end of the Pleistocene to the present.

Scientists use data recovered from this period to reconstruct estimations of past environmental conditions to show past climatic and environmental conditions that may have existed. 

Quaternary Topics

• How Archaeologists and Geomorphologists Can Work Together to Understand the Quaternary
• Mapping Climate Refuges

Soil Geography

Soil geography is often seen as a sub-field of geomorphology. Soil geography studies the distribution of soil across a section of terrain.

This field deals with the makeup of soil as well as soil classification and how soil relates to geomorphology, climate, biological life, and mineral content. 

Soil Geography Topics

• Soil Community in Atacama Desert Survives on Fog
• Satellite Data Shows That Tilling Less Leads to Healthier Soils
• New Study Maps Out the Global Pattern of Soil-based Carbon Storage

Water Resources Geography

This is a branch of geography that normally deals with the study of how water resources are generally managed in a particular region.

Geographers who are involved in this discipline normally look at the manner in which water is collected, distributed and, lastly, used in various places across the planet.

In addition to this, systems developed by humans that are meant to aid the entire process are also studied so that they can consequently be enhanced for maximum efficiency. 

Water Resources Geography

• Using Green Space to Reduce Water Pollution

Related Resources on Geography

• Branches of Geography
• Sub-branches of Human Geography
• Why geography?
• Five Themes of Geography

This article was co-written with Caitlin Dempsey.