-the glistening white sands

of New Mexico. Great wav

e-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert here and created the largest gypsum dune field in the world. The dunes, brilliant and white, are ever changing. They grow, crest, then slump but always advance. Slowly but relentlessly the sand, driven by strong southwest wind

s, c

overs everything in its
path. Within the extre

mely harsh environme

You will receive 2 credit hours in Mechanical Engineering for the IRTB course or 2 credit hours in Engineering Management for the PRSBI course. This class will be graded with letter grades of A, B, C, D or F. You can also receive 1 extra credit for completing a Directed Study.

nt o

f the dune field, even
plants and animals ada

pted to desert con

ditions struggle to survive. Only a few species of plants grow rapidly enough to survive burial by the moving dunes, but several types of small animals have evolved white colorations

Fax: to camouflage the m in the gypsum sand.

White Sands Nation
al Monument preserves a
major part of t
Socorro, NM 87801

his gypsum dune f

ield, along with the plants and animals that have adapted suc
cessfully to this constantly changing environment.At the northern end of the Chihuahuan Desert lies
At the end of the semester you will receive your grade by mail.

a mountain-ringed valley, the Tularosa Basin. Rising f

rom the heart of this basin is one of the world's great natural wonders-the glistening white sands of New Mexico. Great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of dese