Physical Geography by Prof Jeremy Patrich

About this course

Physical geography helps you make sense of how Earth works as a connected system, from the coordinates that place you on a map to the atmospheric patterns that shape climate, and from the rocks beneath your feet to the landforms carved by wind, rivers, waves, and ice. This free online course is designed for learners who want a clear, practical foundation in geography as a school subject, while also building skills that transfer to earth science, environmental studies, planning, and everyday decision-making.

You will strengthen core map-reading confidence by learning how latitude and longitude locate any place on the planet and how time relates to longitude. You will also get comfortable interpreting topographic maps and contour patterns so you can visualize terrain rather than just see lines on a page. As the course moves into the atmosphere, you connect seasons to Earth’s geometry, explore how energy flows through the solar budget and albedo, and understand circulation patterns that drive weather. Concepts like lapse rate and cloud formation become useful tools for explaining what you observe outdoors, not just definitions to memorize.

The course also grounds you in essential geology: mineral identification, the rock cycle, and the forces that rebuild Earth’s crust through plate tectonics, faulting, earthquakes, and volcanism. You then apply that knowledge to landscape change through weathering, erosion, and soils, including horizons and texture—key ideas for interpreting ecosystems and land use. Finally, you travel across major geomorphic environments, examining coastal processes and tides, river systems, deserts and wind transport, and the signatures of glaciation. Throughout, short checks for understanding reinforce the science and help you learn actively, making it easier to retain concepts and explain Earth processes with accuracy.

By the end, you will be able to link location, time, climate, materials, and landforms into one coherent picture—an ideal preparation for school success, further study, or anyone who wants to read the landscape with new clarity.