Olivia DrakeKim Diver, visiting assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences, received an $18,500 grant from the KECK Geology Consortium on Jan. 15. The award will support an undergraduate research program on "GIS Approach to Water-Level Change: Potential Effects of Water-Level Changes on Island Ecosystems," this summer.
The Wesleyan Weather Station recorded a strong drop in local air pressure during Hurricane Sandy on Oct. 29. According to the weather report, the local sea-level barometric pressure was a normal 760 mmHg (millimeters of Mercury) on Oct. 28. When Hurricane Sandy passed through Wesleyan's campus on Oct. 29, the pressure dropped to a low of 733 mmHg during the storm's peak. "Low pressure generally indicates stormy conditions whereas high pressure is associated with fair weather," explains Johan "Joop" Varekamp, the Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science. "We tend to only see the barometer drop this low in the…
(Story contributed by Jim H. Smith) Senior thesis research conducted last spring by Audrey Haynes '12 at Costa Rica’s National University, under the tutorship of Johan “Joop” Varekamp, has shown that many residents of the Central American nation have levels of mercury in their hair that far exceed those recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Varekamp, whose student made the discovery as part of a broad evaluation of environmental mercury in Costa Rica, says the elevated mercury levels are probably a consequence of over-consumption of large ocean fish, not exposure to mercury in the air emitted by volcanoes, as…
By looking at high-resolution images captured by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, scientists are able to see gullies, which are argued to be geologically recent. Because they are most likely formed by water, it is believed that they can answer the question of whether or not there is still "active" water on Mars. As a summer Wesleyan McNair scholar, astronomy major Lavontria Aaron '14 used a hyperspectral instrument to determine if the gullies contained minerals (salts) which would be left behind by water brines. "By examining the spectrum of the brines, we'll be able to learn more about Mars' history and…
David PesciEllen Thomas, research professor of earth and environmental sciences, has been awarded the Maurice Ewing Medal by the American Geophysical Union (AGU). The medal is one of the AGU’s most prestigious awards and will be presented to Thomas during the organization’s annual meeting later this year. According to AGU, “Jointly sponsored with the United States Navy, the Ewing Medal is named in honor of Maurice Ewing, who made significant contributions to deep-sea exploration.” It is presented each year for significant original contributions to the scientific understanding of the processes in the ocean; for the advancement of oceanographic engineering, technology, and…
A new study designed to give scientists a better understanding of how earthquakes occur by studying ancient faults long after the quakes are over will be led by a Wesleyan faculty member and involve at least two of his students. Phillip Resor, assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences, received a $246,728 NSF (National Science Foundation) grant for his study titled “Three Dimensional Characterization of a Pseudotachylyte-bearing Fault.” The grant includes funding for one thesis student for each of the next two years; Wesleyan has contributed additional funding for a second student in 2012. The study will also establish a…
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Phil Resor, assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences, received a $246,728 grant from the National Science Foundation for his study on "Three Dimensional Characterization of a Pseudotachylyte-bearing Fault." The grant was awarded on March 15 and expires on June 30, 2014. In this study, Resor and Wesleyan students will use high-resolution x-ray computed tomography imagery of natural and experimental fault surfaces to quantify surface roughness, frictional contact area, and Pseudotachylyte fault rock thickness. "Pseudotachylytes are generally considered the only unequivocal evidence of earthquake slip velocities that is preserved in fault zones," Resor explains. The proposed project will improve the…
Three faculty members from Earth and Environmental Sciences, as well as two graduate students and two undergraduate students, presented their research at the annual conference of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in San Francisco, Calif., Dec. 5-7. The conference drew more than 20,000 scientists and policy makers from around the world. Associate Professors Suzanne O’Connell and Dana Royer, Assistant Professor Phillip Resor, and Austin Reed MA-candidate, Rosemary Ostfeld BA ‘10/MA ‘12, and Julia Mulhern ’12 all attended. In addition, a poster by Katherine Shervais ’13, was also presented. “Our research in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences is so…
Q&As with outstanding students is an occasional feature of The Wesleyan Connection. This issue we speak with Lief Fredrichs from the Class of 2014. Q: Lief, where are you from, and why did you choose Wesleyan? A: I am from Exeter, NH. I chose Wesleyan because, when I visited, the students (actually tour-guides) seemed the most real to me. I liked Wes because of its reputation for being a small and prestigious school. I applied and got accepted off the waiting list in July. I was planning to go to Bard College, but I decided that I couldn't pass up…
Six Wesleyan researchers, including a graduate student, were authors or co-authors of papers chosen for presentation at this year’s annual meeting of the Geological Society of America (GSA) in Minneapolis, Minn., Oct. 9-12. It is the largest annual meeting of the preeminent scientific association in the geologic and earth science fields. Johan Varekamp, Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Sciences, professor of earth and environmental sciences, presented two papers. The first, “Wethersfield Cove, Hartford, Conn. – A 300 Year Urban Pollution Record,” detailed a study of the sedimentary record of the cove, which revealed unusually high levels of Mercury. The…
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