{"id":58,"date":"2018-08-10T14:09:50","date_gmt":"2018-08-10T14:09:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.nau.edu\/~dsk5\/?page_id=58"},"modified":"2023-01-14T15:41:20","modified_gmt":"2023-01-14T22:41:20","slug":"research","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www2.nau.edu\/~dsk5\/index.php\/research\/","title":{"rendered":"Research"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jon & Hannah, Tokin Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To understand environmental change and its current trajectory requires a long-term perspective of the natural variability in the Earth system. My group studies lake and glacial deposits that provide an archive of long-term climate variability. Our field-oriented projects are mainly in Alaska where past and ongoing climate changes have been pronounced and future changes are anticipated to be greatest.<\/a> In the lab, we analyze the physical properties of lake sediments to reconstruct past climate change and we use radiocarbon, amino acids, and tephras to place these records on a timeline.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lake Sediments from Alaska<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
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Anne & Dave with sediment core from Adak Island<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sediments that accumulate in lakes contain a wealth of information about past and present environmental changes. My group collects sediment cores<\/a> from lakes and analyzes them for a variety of physical and biological properties. <\/a>In addition to the analytical equipment in the Sedimentary Records of Environmental Change Lab<\/a> at NAU, we collaborate with the Continental Scientific Drilling Facility<\/a> and other laboratories for various analyses.<\/p>\n

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Al & Scott assemble weather station, Long Lake, Copper R basin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In southern Alaska<\/a> we are using annually bedded sediment<\/a> from glacier-fed lakes and isotopes<\/a> and productivity indicators<\/a> from non-glacial lakes to interpret climatic changes,\u00a0glacier fluctuations <\/a>and floods<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In Arctic Alaska<\/a>\u00a0and elsewhere<\/a> \u00a0we are monitoring the rivers<\/a> and lakes<\/a>, along with the weather<\/a>, to inform our interpretations of sedimentary sequences<\/a> stored by the lakes, including those that relate to Arctic sea ice<\/a> and to summer temperature<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We integrate our studies into larger international syntheses<\/a> of \u00a0lacustrine-based<\/a> paleoenvironmental records internationally.<\/p>\n

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Quaternary Geochronology<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
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Volcanic ash in a sediment core<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Because knowing the ages of sedimentary sequences and their constituents is essential to understanding the timing, rate, and regional extent of past environmental changes, my group has a strong emphasis in geochronology. Specialties include:<\/a><\/p>\n