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Geosphere Environmental Systems Engineering Lab
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The lab comprehensively evaluates the environment of the geosphere, from the ground surface to the subsurface, using information technology.
AboutAbout the lab
Creating a desirable geosphere environment.
The Geosphere Environmental Systems Engineering Lab studies the environment of the geosphere, the space extending from the ground surface where people live down into the subsurface.
People have developed society by exploiting and using the geosphere, but in the process problems such as land subsidence, changes in the groundwater environment, soil contamination, and sediment disasters have also arisen.
Geosphere environmental problems are hard to detect in their early signs and often appear only after a long time, so appropriate evaluation and monitoring are needed at every stage from planning to maintenance.
Building on geotechnical and rock engineering, the lab explores technologies for development and conservation in harmony with the environment, making use of information technologies such as satellite remote sensing, 3D data, and GIS.
Key terms
- Geosphere
- The space extending from the ground surface where people live down into the subsurface. The region formed by soil, rock, and groundwater
- Remote sensing
- A technology that observes the ground surface from satellites or aircraft to investigate its condition from a distance
- GIS
- Geographic information system. A system for overlaying and analyzing location-linked data on a map
NewsLab news
An undergraduate student won the Excellent Presentation Award at the Research Presentation Meeting of the Western Branch of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers
Research on identifying traces of past geological disasters from topography in vegetation-covered mountains was published in the proceedings of an SPIE international conference
Assistant Professor Hiroyuki Honda won the Excellent Presentation Award at the Kyushu Branch of the Japan Society of Engineering Geology
A master's student won the Excellent Student Award from the Kyushu Branch of the Japanese Geotechnical Society
An undergraduate student won the Excellent Presentation Award at the Research Presentation Meeting of the Western Branch of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers
ResearchResearch themes
The lab evaluates the properties of the soil and rock that make up the geosphere from an engineering perspective and investigates how development at the ground surface affects people's lives. Combining geotechnical and rock engineering with information technologies such as satellite remote sensing and GIS, it pursues research centered on five pillars: geosphere environment, underground development, disaster prediction and prevention, maintenance, and national land conservation.
*Illustrative imageStoring Carbon Dioxide in Rock
Toward CCS (carbon capture and storage), in which CO2 is injected into deep underground rock and sealed in, the lab conducts laboratory experiments that reproduce the pressure and temperature of the subsurface, and investigates how much CO2 porous sandstone can store and how much it allows to permeate. By comparing simulations with experiments, it aims to quantitatively clarify the permeation characteristics.
*Illustrative imageSustainable Development After Disasters
Population growth and changes in land use can increase the damage from disasters. Using remote sensing and geospatial information, the lab analyzes the relationship between land use and disasters over the past several decades, and is examining the characteristics of areas prone to damage and the creation of sustainability indicators for reconstruction.
*Illustrative imagePredicting Flood Inundation with AI
In floods caused by torrential rain, predicting how far inundation will spread is essential to reducing human casualties. Using machine learning, which automatically learns relationships and patterns in data, the lab aims to build a model that can estimate flooding in all rivers, including small and medium-sized ones.
*Illustrative imageDisaster Risk for Evacuation Decisions
In heavy rain disasters, whether people can evacuate within the lead time before damage occurs makes the difference. Of the disaster risk components of hazard, vulnerability, and exposure, the lab focuses on evacuation behavior to evaluate vulnerability, and reproduces conditions during a disaster through evacuation simulations.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Geosphere Environmental Systems Engineering Lab consist of faculty, research fellows, technical staff, administrative assistants, and master's and undergraduate students.
- ProfessorYasuhiro Mitani
- Assistant ProfessorHiroyuki Honda
- Assistant ProfessorKohei Kawano
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Outcrop in Nagoe Kiridoshi Pass” Osumi Akari / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Storing Carbon Dioxide in Rock: “Pumice stone detail444” Benjamint444 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Sustainable Development After Disasters: “Aerial view of agricultural fields in Punjab, India” Bhullargraphic / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Predicting Flood Inundation with AI: “Meandering river aerial photography” Hillebrand Steve, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service / Public domain (cropped)
- Disaster Risk for Evacuation Decisions: “Murmuration 11-2025” Skander zarrad / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (地盤工学研究室): “Geotechnical equipment in Bellevue, WA” SounderBruce / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (環境流体力学研究室): “Surface waves” Roger McLassus / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (防災地盤工学研究室 グローバル地盤災害環境適応学グループ): “Liquefaction,Hinode,Itako-city,Japan” Katorisi / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (都市環境工学研究室): “Morning mist over Lake Matheson with Mount Tasman and Mount Cook behind” Pseudopanax at English Wikipedia / Public domain (cropped)
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