Earth Sciences Commons^™

Diffendal Receives Wisherd Award For University Service, Ronica Stromberg

Robert F. Diffendal, Jr., Publications

Even though he’s retired, Robert Diffendal seems to be working everywhere.

The professor emeritus in the School of Natural Resources retains offices in three buildings. He reports to work at the Center for Great Plains Studies five days a week for about four hours a day. His list of volunteer activities around the state goes on and on, affecting, by his count, 21,088 people since 2003, when he stepped away from full-time faculty work. He capped 2024 at Nebraska Innovation Campus, where he received the Wisherd Award for Outstanding Service to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Chosen by the Emeriti and …

Landslide At River's Edge: Alum Bluff, Apalachicola River, Florida, Joann Mossa, Yin-Hsuen Chen

Center for Geospatial Science, Education & Analytics Faculty Publications

When rivers impinge on the steep bluffs of valley walls, dynamic changes stem from a combination of fluvial and mass wasting processes. This study identifies the geomorphic changes, drivers, and timing of a landslide adjacent to the Apalachicola River at Alum Bluff, the tallest natural geological exposure in Florida at similar to 40 m, comprising horizontal sediments of mixed lithology. We used hydrographic surveys from 1960 and 2010, two sets of LiDAR from 2007 and 2018, historical aerial, drone, and ground photography, and satellite imagery to interpret changes at this bluff and river bottom. Evidence of slope failure includes a …

Numerical Modeling Study Of Coastal Impacts From Extreme Storms And Sea Level Rise In Southern New England, Deborah Crowley

Open Access Dissertations

Coastal areas in southern New England are vulnerable to a range of impacts from extreme storms and sea level rise. The most frequent extreme storms are extratropical storms, commonly referred to as nor’easters, named for the direction of the strongest winds, though these storms also have strong winds from other directions.

Storm winds generate large waves and push water up along the coast in the form of storm surge. The combined impacts of increased water levels and waves include flooding and morphological change. Sea level rise (SLR) will exacerbate these processes, amplifying the associated impacts, which may pose increasing threats …

Investigating Woody Vegetation Recruitment Post Riparian Enhancement Extraction Along The Baduwa't, Rize Martins De Oliveira, Wiley Hughes, Owen Lenox

Forestry, Fire, & Rangeland Management Senior Capstones

The Baduwa’t River in Humboldt County, California, faces a legacy of channelization, poor land management, and severe flooding that has left high, dry floodplain terraces disconnected from the river and dominated by invasive vegetation. In response to sediment deficits during drought years, Riparian Enhancement Extractions (REEs) were introduced as an alternative gravel mining method that simultaneously presented opportunities for habitat restoration. This study evaluates five REEs along the Baduwa’t to identify the construction features and site conditions that promote successful riparian vegetation establishment. Findings show that REEs can create seasonal wetlands conducive to native riparian habitat reestablishment, when excavation is …

Fault Box Modeling Of Dip Slip Faults: A Framework For Fault Box Design And Future Studies, Hailey Pressnell

Master's Theses

The behavior of soils during surface fault rupture is a serious concern in the planning and design of infrastructure that may be located within or near a fault zone. Challenges associated with developing mitigation measures for surface fault rupture include the uncertainty of fault rupture and the variability of fault behavior. Current analytical procedures define surface fault rupture according to the type of fault movement (strike slip, normal or reverse), the amount of displacement on the fault, and the mechanics of the material overlying the fault. The purpose of this thesis is to reconfirm analytical solutions and gain a better …

Restoring Rattlesnake Creek: Using Citizen Science To Assess The Ecological And Morphological Impacts Of Dam Removal In Western Montana, Bethany Blakey

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

As dam removals increase in frequency across the U.S., most research has focused on the impact of larger dam removals, despite the removal of small dams being much more common. Given the hundreds of small dams in Montana, this research uses citizen science data collected over eight years spanning before and after a 2020 small dam removal in Rattlesnake Creek, Montana, to investigate impact on stream ecology and morphology. We analyzed pebble count grain size distributions and aquatic macroinvertebrate biotic indices from 2017 to 2024 to assess changes in sediment transport and macroinvertebrate population as well as evaluate the efficacy …

Applications Of Remote Sensing Data To Understanding Geohazards In Wyoming And Kentucky, Meredith Swallom

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

Shallow geohazards such as earthquakes, landslides, and floods profoundly impact communities globally. Constraining susceptibility to these hazards is critical for effective hazard mitigation and building more resilient communities. This dissertation includes multiple studies that leverage remotely sensed datasets to address hazard susceptibility, including: (1) characterizing a potential northern extension of the Teton fault system, (2) deriving a vegetation-based metric to improve landslide susceptibility maps in eastern Kentucky, with potential global implications, and (3) combining numerical modeling, landscape models, and field constraints to understand how anthropogenic factors affect flood severity in southern Appalachian catchments.

In the first study, analysis of new …

Geochronology And Geomorphology Of The Brule Spillway Of Glacial Lake Duluth, Madeline Josephine Laaksonen

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

During the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene, a series of dyssynchronous advances and retreats resulted in the evolution of the Upper St. Croix River Valley. Proglacial lakes forming at the margins of the retreating ice within the Lake Superior Basin and subsequent multiple drainage events through the Brule Spillway have also drastically shaped the landscape. As a result, the Brule Spillway and broader St. Croix River valley presents an important case study to spillover processes occurring in proglacial landscapes and the reorganization of regional drainage networks and creation of a new hydrogeomorphic regime. While prior literature on the Spillway exists, …

Using Simulated Cascadia Fakequakes To Interpret Paleotsunami Patterns, Anthony M. Joyce

All Master's Theses

This study uses GeoClaw to simulate 8 instantaneous rupture test earthquakes and 48 stochastic earthquakes (Fakequakes) along the Cascadia Subduction Zone to better understand tsunami generation and propagation. The primary goal is to evaluate how variations in Fakequake rupture patterns affect tsunami heights at coastal sites in the Pacific Northwest. The study focused on comparing inner and outer coast wave heights and impacts to understand how the Olympic Peninsula provides a barrier of protection to inner coast sites from southern-generated tsunamis, and implications for tsunami hazard at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI).

Test earthquakes show increased amounts of slip …

The Use Of Lidar In The Study Of Terrain Ruggedness Of Tsunami Inudation Areas At Grewingk Lake And Taan Fiord, Alaska Usa, Shannon P. Mckinnion

All Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

THE USE OF LIDAR IN THE STUDY OF TERRAIN RUGGEDNESS OF TSUNAMI INUDATION AREAS AT GREWINGK LAKE AND TAAN FIORD, ALASKA USA

by

Shannon Patricia McKinnion

In order to test the hypothesis that lidar technologies can detect possible changes in terrain ruggedness due tsunami inundation within a designated area, digital elevation models (DEM) were generated from lidar data for two sites with known tsunami inundation— Grewingk Lake, Alaska and Taan Fiord, Alaska. Cobbles and boulders in these locations were examined using existing terrain ruggedness tools in ArcHydro— Terrain Ruggedness Index (TRI) and Vector Ruggedness Measurement (VRM). The average values …

The Role Of Floodplain Complexity In Wood Turtle Habitat Use, Laura S. Deming

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Wood turtles occupy cold, low-gradient riverine habitat throughout the northeastern United State and southeastern Canada. Stream alterations, such as dams, channel straightening, and floodplain development have diminished the natural hydrologic and sedimentation regimes that result in complex channel and floodplain geomorphology. Studies throughout the species’ range have quantified many aspects of their habitat, but none have quantified components of geomorphology of wood turtle sites. The goal of this study was to explore the role of stream channel and floodplain geomorphology in wood turtle habitat use, with specific objectives to (1) quantify components of stream channel and floodplain geomorphic complexity, (2) …

Conservation And Survey Division 2024 Annual Report, R.M. Joeckel, Michele Waszgis

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

The Conservation and Survey Division of the University of Nebraska - Lincoln is the agency designated by statute to investigate and interpret the geologically related natural resources of the State, to make available to the public the results of these investigations, and to assist in the development and conservation of these resources. It consists of program areas in geology, water, soils and remote sensing-geographic information systems.

Early Holocene Interaction Of Aeolian, Alluvial, And Lacustrine Processes In A Dune-Dammed Valley In The Central Nebraska Sand Hills, Gpsia Mahoney, R. D. Mandel, P.R. Hanson, Sherilyn Fritz

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Stratigraphy And Osl Chronology Of Lunette Deposits Indicates That Nebraska’S Rainwater Basins Formed By Aeolian Deflation Between 39 And 25 Ka, P.R. Hanson, Robert Matthew Joeckel

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Fluvial Geomorphic Resilience In Alluvial Mountain Rivers To Large Floods, Riley T. Henson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

As hydroclimatic extremes intensify, large floods increasingly reshape river systems and threaten infrastructure. Fluvial geomorphic resilience, defined as a river’s resistance to, and recovery from, flood disturbance, offers a useful framework for understanding river response and guiding management. We assessed resilience at two scales: (1) a detailed geomorphic and hydraulic analysis of the June 2022 flood on East Rosebud Creek, Montana, which was part of broader flooding in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and (2) a broad-scale comparison of 12 flood-impacted alluvial mountain rivers across North America and Europe. We quantified resistance using active channel width ratios (W_R) and …

Geomorphic Evolution Of St. Augustine Inlet, St. Johns County, Florida, Kristen Becker

Theses and Dissertations

Tidal inlets interrupt longshore sediment transport, influencing adjacent beach morphology and allowing the exchange of water and sediment between the open oceans and protected back barrier bay. Inlets evolve through a combination of natural processes and are highly dynamic zones where sediment exchanges cause shifting shoreline positions nearby and create new morphological features. Barrier islands/beaches that are close in proximity to inlets evolve and are an important natural feature that dissipates wave energy and protects inland areas. Both natural and anthropogenic processes that affect barrier islands will be investigated during this study, including storm activity, waves, wind, water level, and …

Landslide Mapping, Characterization, And Hazard Assessment With 3d Slope Stability Modeling In White Bluffs, Washington State, Anna Tsitsivas

Dissertations and Theses

Slope failures shape the landscape by moving unstable material downslope and, in doing so, become a great hazard to all those in their path. Understanding the mechanisms that control landslide location, timing, size, type, and runout - and therefore hazards - requires a deep understanding of the local geology, stratigraphy, and groundwater conditions. Along White Bluffs, in south-central Washington, landslides of several failure styles have likely been triggered by an increased water table in recent decades, threatening both farmland behind the bluffs and habitat below. This study focuses on characterizing potential groundwater sources and determining controls on spatial and temporal …

River Confinement And Braiding Loss In Canterbury Region, Aotearoa New Zealand, Victoria Barlow, Peter Ashmore

Geography & Environment Publications

In relation to the wider concern that rivers in Aotearoa New Zealand have been narrowed by river control and land-use encroachment, and that iconic braided patterns are being lost, nine braided rivers from the Canterbury region were studied to compare river width, pattern type and braiding intensity between the mid-1900s and the present based on mapping from aerial images. Channel narrowing occurred along >90% (~490km) of the length of the rivers studied, 375km of which were historically braided. In total, the rivers narrowed by an average of 43% (48% for braided reaches). Coinciding with narrowing, braided reaches lost 1.3 channels, …

Testing For Patterns Of Deformation From The Yellowstone Hotspot Along The Gallatin River, Sw Montana, Jack Willard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Yellowstone has fascinated humans for thousands of years. Geologists have addressed many of the region’s mysteries, including the underlying mantle hotspot, the chain of calderas tracking the motion of the North American Plate over this hotspot, and the risks posed by the super volcano. However, the way that the hotspot impacts regional tectonics and topography remains under-studied. Influential previous work recognized the Yellowstone Crescent of High Terrain (YCHT), an arc of high topography around the Yellowstone Plateau with limbs extending to the west and south into central Idaho and northern Utah. The YCHT is also hypothesized to be the pattern …

Performance Of Acoustic Telemetry And Space Use Of Pallid Sturgeon In The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Christopher F. Pullano

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) are centenarian, potamodromous, rheophiles that historically occupied the Missouri River and Mississippi River basins. Listed on the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1990, population declines are attributed to habitat fragmentation and degradation, as well as overharvest, and hybridization. A knowledge gap exists regarding the extent to which tributaries facilitate key life stages for Pallid Sturgeon. This study evaluated the capacity of acoustic telemetry to monitor the movements of Pallid Sturgeon in a shallow, braided tributary to the Missouri River. The specific objectives were to (1) evaluate the environmental variables influencing the performance of acoustic …

Glacial Erosion Rates From The Last Glacial Maximum To Present In Southern Patagonia (50°S), Anastasia Fedotova

Earth Sciences Theses and Dissertations

Over the past few decades, the notion of exogenic processes (e.g. weathering, erosion) contributing to mountain building rather than destruction has become increasingly supported through both direct observations and modeling. As a result, the details of the link between erosion, and therefore climate, and the tectonic evolution of mountain ranges, have progressively become established. One of the key observations emerging from the climate-tectonic debate has been the role of glaciers as powerful landscape sculptors, sensitive to climate signals. The reconstruction of glacial environments evolution and the recovery of patterns of glacial erosion over time have proven key to understanding feedbacks …

Sedimentary Characteristics Of Flood Deposits In Coastal And Fluvial Environments: Examples From Washover Fans (North Carolina, Usa) And Floodplain Deposits (Mississippi, Usa), Shara Gremillion

Dissertations

Extreme flooding from severe and prolonged meteorological events and / or overbanking rivers are some of the most deadly and expensive disasters globally, impacting millions of lives, the environment, and property. People living in vulnerable areas, such as near coasts and rivers, are the first to be impacted with effects of these flood hazards. Scientific studies and their results can aid communities and officials in planning and preparing for those flood impacts. In this three-part study, flood impacts from coastal storms in North Carolina, and flooding along the Mississippi River (MSR) in the state of Mississippi, USA are assessed from …

Evaluation Of 3d Beach Profiles: A New Method For Monitoring Changes In Beach Morphology And Grain Size, Kalinda Ellen Roberts

Graduate Masters Theses

Beach profiles are a simple and affordable approach to monitoring changes in beach morphology. However, traditional methods offer limited resolution and dimension. Recent advancements in technologies, particularly structure-from-motion (SfM) and grain size detection models (GSDMs), can be integrated into conventional beach profiling techniques, enabling more detailed spatial and temporal analysis of slope and grain sizes. This research introduces a new technique for coastal monitoring, termed “3D Beach Profiles,” which integrates SfM technology to create high-resolution three-dimensional digital surface models (DSMs) and orthomosaics of beach surfaces. These digital surfaces enable the extraction of beach slopes with orders of magnitude more data …

New Constraints On The Stratigraphic Architecture And Evolution Of Mississippi River Delta Lobe Activity: Barataria Basin, Southeastern La, Wilke Coleman

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Barataria Basin is a shallow water, interdistributary estuary that has evolved in response to dynamic depositional regimes governed by distributary avulsion and reworking of sediments by coastal processes. In the Mississippi River delta plain, the migratory nature of the River has produced an evolving landscape constructed through episodes of regressive and transgressive sedimentation. These processes produce unique depositional signatures in the stratigraphic record, however the transgressive component of the delta cycle often results in obliteration of the regressive phase. This study uses a modern suite of geophysical and sediment core data to construct a revised geologic framework in Barataria Basin, …

Landslide Inventory And Unstable Slope Monitoring Along Highways In Eastern Tennessee, Robert Mcsweeney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research introduces an unstable slope management program (USMP) for Tennessee based on federal slope management standards, along with improved methods for landslide monitoring with unmanned aerial systems (UAS) lidar and photogrammetry. In mountainous regions, monitoring slope hazards is a critical function of transportation management. A mobile field assessment form created with Survey123 was used to collect 22 unstable slope ratings in eastern Tennessee. Location points were appended with photographs, notes, and site information. Landslide scores ranged from 325 (Fair) to 1005 (Poor). UAS monitoring of a slow-moving soil landslide along I-40 near Rockwood, TN, produced high-resolution lidar and photogrammetry …

Carbon Dioxide Dynamics In The Carbonate Critical Zone, Savoy Experimental Watershed, Arkansas, Usa, Michael Darvin Jones

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The dynamics of carbon dioxide (CO₂) within the Earth’s critical zone (CZ) are essential for driving spatial and temporal variations of carbonate dissolution and precipitation, which are fundamental to subsurface porosity and permeability development. However, there is still a significant knowledge gap regarding the patterns of CO₂ transport and production within the carbonate critical zone (CCZ). In this study, we investigated these dynamics within a mantled karst terrain at the Savoy Experimental Watershed (SEW) in Northwest Arkansas.

Previous monitoring of partial pressure of CO₂ (PCO₂) and dissolution rates at karst springs in …

Effects Of Longitudinal Training Walls On Two-Dimensional Flow Structure, Sediment Transport, And Bed Aggredation Using Numerical Methods And Sediment Core Analyses In Grand River, Michigan, Sumaiya Tul Siddique

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Longitudinal training walls (LTWs) are structures oriented parallelly with the main flow and separate the channel into two sub-channels. One channel acts as the main navigational channel and the other is considered a secondary side channel. The long-term effects of the LTWs on morphodynamics and deposition remain poorly understood. This study investigated the long-term effects of the LTWs on flow, sediment transport and long-term deposition of the Grand River using numerical approaches and sediment core analysis. The effects of LTWs on 2D flow dynamics and sediment transport were investigated by using numerical approaches. The long-term deposition under the influence of …

Manifestations Of Sulfuric Acid Speleogenesis In The Mulapampa Travertine, Central Andes Of Peru: Evidence From The Gruta Con Lago, Andrzej Tyc, Krzysztof Gaidzik, Justyna Ciesielczuk, Katarzyna Wątor

International Journal of Speleology

Sulfuric acid speleogenesis (SAS) is a form of hypogene speleogenesis characterized by the formation of caves in carbonate rocks due to the presence of sulfuric acid. This study focuses on the Gruta con Lago, one of three caves identified in the Mulapampa travertine, located in the central Andes of Peru. These caves are accessed through collapse sinkholes, and much of their morphology results from roof breakdown. The bottom of the studied cave is situated at the current water table. Despite the absence of typical solutional features associated with SAS caves, mineralogical and geochemical evidence of speleogenesis involving H₂SO …

The Environment Of Glaciovolcanic Caves And Their Value As Planetary Analogues, Christian Stenner, Lee J. Florea, Linda Sobolewski, Andreas Pflitsch, Morgan Cable, Roberto Anitori, Richard E. Davis, Kathleen Graham, Glyn Williams-Jones

FRONTIERS UNBOUND: Exploring Extreme Environments

No abstract provided.

A Systematic Study Of Planetary Envelope Growth With 3d Radiation-Hydrodynamics Simulations, Avery Bailey, James M. Stone, Jeffrey Fung

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Research

In the core accretion model of planet formation, envelope cooling regulates the accretion of material and ultimately sets the time-scale to form a giant planet. Given the diversity of planet-forming environments, opacity uncertainties, and the advective transport of energy by three-dimensional (3D) recycling flows, it is unclear whether one-dimensional models can adequately describe envelope structure and accretion in all regimes. Even in 3D models, it is unclear whether approximate radiative transfer methods sufficiently model envelope cooling, particularly at the planetary photosphere. To address these uncertainties, we present a suite of 3D radiation-hydrodynamics simulations employing methods that directly solve the transfer …