We are pleased to announce the donation of the MOVE software package to the Department of Geosciences by the Scotland-based Petroleum Experts Limited. This industry-standard software package is valued at $2.18 million and provides tools for 3D analysis and geophysical and structural modeling of deformation of the Earth's crust.
This week several faculty and students are presenting at the American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting in Washington DC. If you're there, check out these great talks by Kevin Bean, Dr. Forrest Bowlick, Xin Li, Dr. Eve Vogel, and Dr. Piper Gaubatz:
A 1:24,000-scale geologic map and database of surficial materials has been released by the USGS for Massachusetts. This has been a major effort by State Geologist Steve Mabee and the Massachusetts Geological Survey, in collaboration with the USGS, since 2002. The database and map represents the culmination of nearly 80 years of state-federal cooperation and research.
Assistant Professor Dr. Isaac Larsen has received a Fulbright Scholarship for Spring 2020! Dr.
The Daily Hampshire Gazette recently interviewed PhD student Shaina Rogstad and assistant Professor Dr. Ambarish Karmalkar on the IPCC's recent report on the impacts of global warming and how it will affect Western Massachusetts. Read more...
Department head and professor Dr. Julie Brigham-Grette was interviewed by Live Science on her role in the construction of the Yukon Geological Survey's new map of Beringia, ca. 18,000 years ago. Read more...
Dr. Mike Rawlins, associate director of the Climate Systems Research Center, was recently interviewed on WAMC Northeast Public Radio about 2018 being the wettest year on record for Massachusetts, in addition to increasingly rapid weather changes in New England due to climate change. Read more...
Recent research by Professor Dr. Rob DeConto is featured by National Geographic-- The article discusses this research in the light of studies pubished this month showing that retreat of of our ice caps may be slower than previously thought, though the situation is still dire... Read More...
Staple Isotope Laboratory manager and alum Dr. Jeff Salacup published a recent paper in AGU's Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology on using alkenones from phytoplankton to reconstruct high-resolution paleo- sea surface temperatures from coastal settings in Narragansett Bay, RI. Read more....
Professor Dr. Stephen Burns, post-doctoral researcher Dr.
A pond full of decaying oak leaves soon turns as brown as tea. Eventually, much of that rotting organic matter is released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Now, a new study by graduate student Jiwei Li and Dr. Qian Yu could improve scientists’ ability to track such emissions by improving how satellites detect dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in freshwater.
The formation mechanism of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York has long posed a geologic mystery, say seismology researchers at the nearby University of Massachusetts Amherst. A few have been proposed, but until recently tools for evaluating them were not in place, say Geosciences postdoctoral fellow Xiaotao Yang and assistant professor Haiying Gao.
Scientists know that the Arctic is warming faster than any other region, and this is associated with greatly reduced extent and seasonal persistence of sea-ice.
After a journey of 20 miles and 450 million years, a 3-ton specimen of pillow lava has found a home on a grassy area just above the Morrill Courtyard steps. Read more...
Using newly discovered archival measurements to construct an instrumental record of water levels and storm tides in Boston since 1825, researchers report today that local averaged relative sea level rose by nearly a foot (0.28 meters) over the past 200 years, with the greatest increase occurring since 1920. The work also highlights tides and their significant effect on flooding in the city. Read more...
Graduate student Raquel Bryant and Professor Dr. Michele Cooke were awarded competetive Outstanding Achievement awards by the College of Natural Sciences (CNS) at U-Mass Amherst. Raquel was recognized for her achievments in furthering diversity and inclusion in CNS, while Dr.
A new paper by Dr. Forrest Bowlick and Dr. Dawn Wright (ESRI) in The Professional Geographer discusses the frontiers of geography and how skills in research computing and programming operate in geography and GIS, especially given the rise of data-centric approaches to research in these realms.
Geologist and geochemist Dr. Isaac Larsen is used to tramping around in the dirt to conduct his soil research, but satellite photos of the Iowa farmhouse where he grew up have added a new dimension to the work, and he now has a grant from NASA to study soils in a whole new way, from space.
Several of our Geosciences students, and other students that our faculty have sponsored, are presenting today at the Massachusetts Undergraduate Research Conference in the U-Mass Campus Center. Pop on by to hear about their great research:
Eight UMass Geosciences undergraduates presented their research at the 5 College Geology Symposium at Amherst College on Tuesday, April 24th, 2018:
Department of Geosciences
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University of Massachusetts
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