Numerical methods in geophysics
Prerequisites
Here are the lecture notes for the 2024/2025 module Numerical Simulation methods in Geophysics. These notes are tailored for Master’s students of Geophysics or Geoinformatics at the Institute of Geophysics and Geoinformatics, TU Bergakademie Freiberg.
You can access all the materials on the GitHub repository https://github.com/halbmy/NumericalGeophysics.
Enjoy studying!
Background
While this course was around already since 2000 in Freiberg, it did not meet the general title before I started and I found no text book about learning the background of the simulation methods being increasingly used in geophysics, particularly solving partial differential equations by own codes and understanding the physics by doing so. I aim at all common PDE types from elliptic, parabolic to hyperbolic, going from 1D to 2D and 3D, from Finite Differences to Finite Elements and Finite Volumes.
Code
The website’s course material includes sections with embedded Python code.
You can easily copy the code and execute it in a compatible Python runtime environment.
For an optimal experience, we recommend installing Python via miniforge.
Moreover, you have the freedom to explore your own concepts and delve deeper into the course content by creating your personalized Jupyter notebooks. You can utilize use either Visual Studio Code or Jupyterlab
The material was created by Quarto.
Working with Jupyter Notebooks in Visual Studio Code is exceptionally straightforward.
Self study
There are individual small tasks for self-study that are scattered throughout the lecture.
Recommended Reading
The most important source of supplementary information is the book by @ward1988electromagnetic.
License
This material is licensed under the Creative Commons License.