Faculty
A - B
Dr. James Beget, Professor
Contact: jebeget@alaska.edu or (907) 474-5301
Teaching:
Research: Quaternary geology, Tephrachronology, Volcanology, geomorphology
Curriculum Vitae
C
Dr. Doug Christensen, Professor
Associate Director of Geophysical Institute
Dr. Bernard Coakley, Professor
Contact: bernard.coakley@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-5385
Teaching:
GEOS 438/638 - Basin Analysis
GEOS 416 - Applied Geophysics in alternate years.
Research: Marine geophysics
Curriculum Vitae
D
Dr. Cary De Wit, Associate Professor of Geography
Contact: cwdewit@alaska.edu or 907-474-7141
Teaching:
GEOG 302 - Geography of Alaska
GEOG 303 - Geography of the U.S. and Canada
GEOG 305 - Geography of Europe
GEOG 311 - Geography of Asia
GEOG 312 - People, Places & Env: Principles of Human Geography
GEOG 420 - Geopolotics of Energy
Research interests:
Cultural geography, North American regional cultures, rural cultures, perceptual geography, and sense of place. Recent research interests are popular perceptions of Alaska and the expression of frontier ideology in Alaskan politics, culture, and landscape.
Education:
B.S., 1984 University of Kansas
M.A., 1992 University of Kansas
Ph.D., 1997, University of Kansas
Dr. Patrick Druckenmiller, Associate Professor of Geology
Earth Sciences Curator, University of Alaska Museum
Contact: psdruckenmiller@alaska.edu or (907) 474-6954
Teaching:
Research: Vertebrate paleontology specializing in Mesozoic marine reptiles; plesiosaur and ichthyosaur phylogeny; Jurassic marine reptiles of Svalbard, Norway; Alaskan dinosaurs
Curriculum Vitae
E
Dr. Hajo Eicken, Professor
Contact: hajo.eicken@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-7280
Teaching: Sea ice geophysics (GEOS 615)
Glaciers, volcanoes and earthquakes (GEOS 120, Glaciers module of the course)
Image processing applications in the geosciences (GEOS 622)
Field techniques in interdisciplinary sea ice research (GEOS 695)
Research: Sea Ice Geophysics
Curriculum Vitae
F - G
Dr. Sarah Fowell, Associate Professor
2006-2007 Outstanding Teacher Award
Contact: sjfowell@alaska.edu or (907) 474-7810
Teaching:
Research: Reconstruction of ancient ecosystems and climates through identification of pollen and spores preserved in lacustrine sediments or rocks.
Curriculum Vitae
Dr. Jeff Freymueller, Professor
Contact: jeff@giseis.alaska.edu or (907) 474-7286
Teaching:
Research: Primary research focus is in the field of crustal deformation resulting from active tectonic and volcanic processes. Current research topics include studies of the subduction process in southern Alaska; uplift due to post-glacial rebound in the Glacier Bay area, southeast Alaska; the large-scale kinematics of the Indian-Eurasia plate collision zone in China; kinematics of the San Andreas fault system in northern California; deformation on active volcanoes in the Alaska-Aleutian arc; techniques for estimating deformation models from Global Positioning System (GPS), Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) and other geodetic data.
Curriculum Vitae
H - I - J
Dr. Catherine Hanks, Associate Professor
Contact: clhanks@alaska.edu or (907) 474-5562
Teaching:
Sedimentology and Structural Geology for Petroleum Engineers (GEOS 370)
Reservoir Characterization (PETE 421)
Petroleum Geology (GEOS 445/645)
Topics in Petroleum Geology (GEOS 692)
Research:
Structural geology with a specific focus on natural fracture character and evolution and it's impact on reservoirs. Other research focuses on energy resources including shale resource plays, geothermal energy and CO2 sequestration.
Curriculum Vitae:
GI Tectonics and Sedimentation website link:
Dr. Regine Hock, Professor
Contact: regine.hock@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-7691
Teaching: Glaciers (GEOS 617)
Glaciers, Volcanoes and Earthquakes (GEOS 120, glaciers module of the course)
Research: Glacier mass balance, glacier meteorology and hydrology, modeling the response of glaciers to climate change, and the contribution of glacier wastage to global sea-level rise.
Curriculum Vitae
K
Dr. Mary Keskinen, Associate Professor
Contact: mjkeskinen@alaska.edu or (907) 474-7769
Teaching:
Research: Metamorphic petrology, petrology and geochemsitry of geothermal/fumarolic systems
Curriculum Vitae
L
Dr. Jessica Larsen, Associate Professor
Contact: jflarsen@alaska.edu or (907) 474- 7992
Teaching:
GEOS 120 - Volcanoes module (Earthquakes, Glaciers, Volcanoes)
GEOS 406 - Volcanology
GEOS 670 - Selected Topics in Volcanology
Research: Volcanology and petrology
Curriculum Vitae
M
Dr. Chris Maio, Assistant Professor of Coastal Geography
Contact: cvmaio@alaska.edu
Teaching:
GEOG 111 Physical Geography w/Lab
GEOG 339 Maps & Landscape Analysis
GEOG 483 Research Design, Writing, Presentation Methods
GEOG 412 Geography of Climate and Environmental Change
GEOS 330 The Dynamic Alaska Coastline
Research:
My research focuses on elucidating coastal environmental changes occurring over multiple spacial and temporal scales in response to natural and anthropogenic drivers. This research will be an important component to developing appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies to climate change along Alaska's coastline.
Earth and Environment: Elements of Physical Geography (4 credits)
Dr. Dan Mann, Assistant Professor of Geography
Contact: dhmann@alaska.edu
Research
forest ecology, ice-age climate change, and the interactions between prehistoric humans and changing climate.
Current/recent postdoctoral fellows and graduate students
Course Syllabi:
Biogeography - GEOG 418 and BIOL 618
Ice Age Alaska - GEOG 493 / 693
Climate Change Processes ATM 494/694 and GEOG 494/694 (4 credits)
Dr. Paul McCarthy, Professor
Department Chair
Contact: pjmccarthy@alaska.edu or (907) 474-6894
Teaching:
Research: Paleolandscape evolution, alluvial architecture and nonmarine sequence stratigraphy
Curriculum Vitae
Dr. Franz J. Meyer, Associate Professor
Contact: fmeyer@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-7767
Teaching:
Research: Development of advanced SAR, InSAR, PS-InSAR
Curriculum Vitae
UPCOMING PhD POSITION IN RADAR REMOTE SENSING -- Spring 2014
Dr. Jochen Mezger, Field Camp Director
Contact: jemezger@alaska.edu or (907) 474-7809
Curriculum Vitae
Publications
Teaching:
GEOS 225 - Field and Computer Methods (Spring, co-teaching with Rainer Newberry)
GEOS 351 - Geology Field Camp (Summer, 8 weeks, co-teaching with various faculty)
GEOS 605 - Geochronology (Fall, co-teaching with Elisabeth Nadin)
Research:
- Interaction between metamorphism and deformation
- Microtectonics
- Metamorphism of metasedimentary rocks
- Gneiss domes
- Axial Zone of the Pyrenees
N - O
Dr. Elisabeth Nadin, Assistant Professor
Contact: enadin@alaska.edu or (907) 474-5181
Teaching:
GEOS 475/675 = Presentation Techniques (co-teach with R. Newberry, Fall)
GEOS 309 = Tectonics (Fall)
GEOS 605 = Geochronology (co-teach with P. Layer every other Fall)
GEOS 101 = Dynamic Earth (Spring)
GEOS 222 = Fundamentals of Geospatial Science (Spring)
Research: Elisabeth Nadin studies continental fault zones to assess the strength of continental crust from the surface to the brittle–plastic transition. Her geological investigations require both field work and lab work. In the field, she maps large and small structures associated with faulting. Back in the lab, various thermochronometers are used to determine ages of fault rocks, and thermobarometers are employed to determine the corresponding depths and temperatures of formation and deformation of rocks in and around the fault zone. Nadin also analyzes rock fabrics by petrographic microscope, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), and Xray diffraction (XRD) to understand how different minerals—and their relative abundances—affect the overall strength of continental crust. These investigations provide insight into the past development and future
evolution of Earth's crust.
Currently, Nadin is working in the mid- to lower-crustal sections of the Talkeetna Arc, southeast Alaska. Her investigations include 1) a geochemical comparison of mid-crustal arc levels from the Jurassic and today (as preserved in xenoliths of the active Aleutian arc); 2) detrital-zircon studies of metasediments associated with the Talkeetna Arc; and 3) rock flow fabrics preserved within the middle and lower crustal levels of this accreted arc.
Curriculum Vitae
Dr. Rainer Newberry, Professor
Contact: rjnewberry@alaska.edu or (907) 474-6895
Teaching:
Research: Genesis of ores and ore deposit exploration, field and theoretical geochemistry
Curriculum Vitae
P - Q
Dr. Erin Pettit, Assistant Professor of Geophysics
Contact: ecpettit@alaska.edu or (907) 474-5389
Teaching: GEOS 620: Geodynamics (Fall 2008, Fall 2010)
GEOS 692: Reading Seminar in Glaciology (Spring 2009, Spring 2011)
GEOS 4?? (t.b.a., Fall 2011)
International Glaciology Summer School
(http://www.gi.alaska.edu/snowice/glaciers/events/summer_school/, 2010)
Research: Glacier dynamics and climate change
Curriculum Vitae
Girls on Ice (http://girlsonice.org)
Dr. Anupma Prakash, Professor
CNSM Department Co-Chair
Contact: prakash@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-1897
Teaching:
Research: Mapping Earth Surface Composition and Change; Remote Sensing and GIS.
Curriculum Vitae
R - S
Dr. Vladimir Romanovsky, Professor
Contact: veromanovsky@alaska.edu or (907) 474-7459
Teaching:
Research: Cold region soil engineering problems and modeling
Curriculum Vitae
T - U - V
Dr. Carl Tape, Assistant Professor of Geophysics
Contact: ctape@alaska.edu or (907) 474-5456
Teaching: GEOS 626 Applied Seismology
GEOS 627 Inverse Problems and Parameter Estimation
Research: Computational and observational seismology; seismic imaging; inverse problems
Curriculum Vitae
W - X - Y - Z
Dr. Wes Wallace, Professor
Contact: wallace@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-5386
Teaching: Structural geology, geologic mapping, global tectonics, geologic evolution of Alaska, seismic interpretation
Research: Geometry and kinematics of fold-and-thrust structures, structure and evolution of the Brooks Range, tectonic evolution of Alaska
Curriculum Vitae
Dr. Michael Whalen, Professor
Contact: mtwhalen@gi.alaska.edu or (907) 474-5302
Teaching: Stratigraphy and sedimentation and environmental geology as well as upper division courses in carbonate petrology, sedimentology, sequence stratigraphy, and mass extinctions.
Research: Carbonate sedimentology and stratigraph
Curriculum Vitae