Geological Oceanography
Overview
Jacqueline E. Dixon
Professor
Geological Oceanography
Ph.D., California Institute of Technology, 1992
Office Phone: 727.553.3369
Email: jdixon@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Research: Igneous Petrology; Mantle Geochemistry; Role of Volatiles in Magmatic Processes; Deep Earth Geochemical Cycling of Volatiles.
Specialties: Geochemistry, Igneous Petrology, Marine Volcanology, Volatiles, Higher Education Administration, Geology.
Dr. Dixon’s research interests focus on the role of H2O and CO2 in the generation and evolution of basaltic magmas with an emphasis on submarine volcanoes. Her work includes solubility studies of H2O and CO2 in basaltic melts, vapor saturation and degassing models, and modeling of volatile contents in primary magmas and the mantle. Study areas have included the mid-ocean ridge system, Hawaii, the Galapagos, and the Easter Salas y Gomez Seamount Chain. Dr. Dixon received a NSF Early Career award in 1997 for excellence in research and education. In 2007, EPSL acknowledged one of her papers (Dixon et al., 2004) as one of their top-50 most cited articles.
From 1992 through 2010, Dr. Dixon was a professor at the University of Miami, where she was as a professor at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and in the Geology Department within the College of Arts and Sciences. At UM, she served as Director of the Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy’s Undergraduate Program (’03-’08), Senior Associate Dean for the Life and Physical Sciences (’06-’10), and Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (’09-’10). In 2011, Dr. Dixon joined the ßŮßÇÂţ» to became Dean of the College of Marine Science. She returned to the faculty as a Professor in July 2020, and recently received a major award from the National Science Foundation to study submarine volcanism on the mid-Atlantic Ridge south of Iceland. The research expedition will involve detailed mapping and sampling using ROV Jason and AUV Sentry.
Dixon is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She serves as the Editor in Chief for Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, a gold open access AGU journal that publishes original research papers on Earth and planetary processes with a focus on understanding the Earth as a system. She also serves on the Advisory Board for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and on the MIT Earth, Atmosphere, and Planetary Sciences Advisory Board.
Pamela Hallock Muller
Distinguished University Professor
Geological Oceanography
Ph.D., University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1977
Office Phone: 727.553.1567
Email: pmuller@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Research: Biological, Environmental and Evolutionary Controls on the Production and
Accumulation of Carbonate Sediments: Geologic History of Reefs; Modern Coral Reefs;
Shelf Ecology; Environmental Management; Micropaleontology; Paleoceanography; Paleoecology.
Studies of both the geologic record and modern ecosystems provide insight not only
into environments of the past and present, but also the probable effects of human
activities on future tropical marine ecosystems. Foraminifera are the most abundant
shelled organisms in modern oceans and have a fossil record going back more than 500
million years. They are also excellent model organisms for environmental and paleoceanographic
research. Ongoing projects include: a) decadal-scale changes in reef communities of
the Florida Keys, b) biology and ecology of benthic foraminifera, corals and their
algal symbionts, c) development of bioindicator protocols applicable to reef environments
worldwide, and d) effects of ocean acidification on calcification of benthic organisms.
Professor Hallock’s graduate students have come from backgrounds ranging from biology
and geology to engineering and computer science; all with an interest in interdisciplinary
research. Their work has implications across the geobiological spectrum including
cell biology, algal symbiosis, coral-reef ecology, environmental management, global
environmental change, evolution, paleoceanography, sedimentology, and hydrocarbon
exploration.
In 2012, Dr. Hallock Muller was elected as a Fellow of the Paleontological Society.
In 2013, Dr. Hallock Muller was chosen as one of the Top 25 Women Professors in Florida.
Cheryl J. Hapke
Research Professor, College of Marine Science
Ph.D. Coastal Geology
Coordinator, Florida Coastal Mapping Program
Office Phone: 727-553-1184
Email: chapke@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Research: Coastal regions throughout the world are experiencing the impacts of sea-level rise and increased coastal hazards from inundation, storms, and erosion. Detailed knowledge of coastal processes and evolution are critical for understanding vulnerabilities to the various hazards in both natural and built systems. Coastal communities have a growing need for coastal science experts to aid in the development of sound sea-level rise adaptation plans. My research focuses on the geomorphic evolution of coastal systems ranging from barrier islands to rocky coasts and estuarine systems – understanding how coasts are changing now and have changed in the past is critical towards understanding what may happen in the future. Potential future coastal response can be modeled in the context of probabilistic frameworks and the models very dependent on high-resolution elevation data of both the coastline and the adjacent seafloor. I am the coordinator of the Florida Coastal Mapping Program, an initiative to coordinate across federal and state partners to realize the vision of having high-resolution data available for all of Florida’s coastal waters in a decade. Data collected as part of this initiative has application across numerous sectors including research, navigation, restoration, storm surge modeling, fisheries management, and community resilience planning.
David F. Naar
Associate Dean, Professor
Geological Oceanography
Ph.D., Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 1990
Office Phone: 727.553.1637
Email: naar@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Research: Marine Magnetics; Mid-Ocean Ridge and Hotspot Interactions; Plate Tectonics;
Wax Analog Modeling of Seafloor Spreading Processes, Seafloor Mapping of Fish Habitats,
Artificial Reefs, Coral Reefs, Mines, Paleoshorelines, and Hydrothermal Vents.
These research interests have been addressed with oceanographic seafloor mapping expeditions
to the Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Analyses of multibeam,
magnetics, gravity, side-scan sonar are made in conjunction with insight from a seafloor
spreading analog wax model. Ongoing projects include: Plate tectonic reconstruction
of the Pacific-Nazca plates, Off-axis volcanism along the Easter Seamount Chain, and
benthic habitat studies around Florida and the Bahamas.
Brad E. Rosenheim
Associate Professor
Geological Oceanography
Ph.D. University of Miami, 2005
Office Phone: 727-553-3354
Email: brosenheim@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Southern Ocean Science Website
Research: Paleoceanography/Paleoclimate, stable isotopes, carbon cycling.
Research in Brad Rosenheim’s group aims to constrain changes in climate and carbon
cycling in the recent geologic past, from the anthropocene to the last glacial maximum.
Researchers working with Dr. Rosenheim employ isotopic techniques including conventional
stable isotope measurements (H, C, N, O), non-conventional stable isotope measurements
(“clumped” isotopes in CO2 derived from carbonate minerals), and radioisotopic techniques
including uranium system dating and radiocarbon analysis. Dr. Rosenheim’s group obtains
geologic and oceanographic data from sediment, coral and sclerosponge skeletons, ice,
and the open ocean water column. The group casts a broad approach to specific questions
regarding climate and carbon cycling, resulting in success of obtaining research support
from an equivalently broad section of NSF programs and other funding agencies that
fund Earth Sciences.
For up-to-date laboratory activities and a list of recent publications and news, please
visit the Rosenheim lab web page.
Amelia Shevenell
Associate Professor
Geological Oceanography
Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara, 2004
Office Phone: 727.553.3372
Email: ashevenell@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
Southern Ocean Science Website
Wikipedia page
Research: Paleoceanography/Paleoclimatology; Trace and minor elements in biogenic
calcite and marine sediments; Stable isotopes in carbonate and siliceous marine microfossils;
Lipid biomarkers; Sedimentology.
Dr. Shevenell is an Associate Professor of Geological Oceanography at USF College
of Marine Science. She received her PhD in Marine Science in 2004 from the University
of California Santa Barbara. In 2005, she was awarded a Program on Climate Change
postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Washington. In 2007, Dr. Shevenell moved
to the United Kingdom, where she was an Assistant Professor in Earth Sciences and
Geography at University College London. She joined the USF faculty in 2011. Dr. Shevenell's
research focuses on generating high-resolution geochemical and micropaleontological
(foraminifera) records from marine sediments to address questions related to Earth's
climate evolution over the last 65 million years. Her current research interests are
geographically diverse (including the Southern Ocean and North Pacific Ocean) and
divided into three focus areas: 1) Antarctic ice sheet development over the last 50
million years from far-field and ice proximal marine sediment records, 2) the role
of the high-latitude oceans in Glacial-Interglacial carbon cycling, and 3) Antarctic
Holocene climate variability. Research undertaken by the Shevenell Lab is relevant
to IPCC concerns that ongoing climate changes are accelerating polar ice cap melting
and global sea level rise. Shevenell and her graduate students develop, calibrate,
and employ a wide variety of inorganic and organic geochemical and micropaleontologic
techniques to reconstruct past changes in ocean temperature, circulation, productivity,
continental ice volume, and carbon cycling on decadal to million year timescales.
Dr. Shevenell is actively involved in several international research programs, including
the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP), and has served on several IODP advisory
panels, in addition to proposing and participating in several IODP scientific expeditions.
Dr. Shevenell currently serves the broader scientific community in several capacities.
In 2020, she was appointed as an Associate Editor for the AGU journal, Paleoceanography
and Paleoclimatology; in 2016 she was recognized as an AGU Outstanding Reviewer. In
2019, Dr. Shevenell was elected to serve as the Geological Oceanography Counselor
on The Oceanography Society governing council, and is a member of their nominations
and ethics committees. In 2019, Dr. Shevenell was elected a full member of Sigma Xi,
the scientific research honor society and received a USF Faculty Outstanding Research
Achievement Award. Dr Shevenell maintains an active sea-going research program and
encourages graduate student participation in research cruises.