Seminar and Visit to GFZ Potsdam

In just a few weeks time (October 11, 2022) I will be giving a the seminar for GFZ Earth Surface Processes Modelling Section in Potsdam. The talk is in person, which means I get to visit Germany for the first time, other than a few hours spent in airports! It is sounding like it will be a packed week of meeting scientists at GFZ, but I will still have some time to look around Potsdam and Berlin. If you are in the area that week and would like to meet up, please message me on Twitter or send me an email.

My talk will cover a good chunk of my dissertation research on the coevolution of landscape morphology and shallow groundwater. Some of the content will come from our study that was published in JGR Earth Surface last year, but a lot will be brand new, never before seen insights into the emergence of variable source area hydrology in evolving landscapes. This is really the heart of what I set out to explore when I began my PhD, and four years later, I can say it has reached some exciting conclusions. I’ll share more information when it’s available.

In case you want to read the actual abstract for the talk, here it is:

Landscape evolution models (LEMs) have been crucial for understanding of how upland topography evolves in response to climate, lithology, and baselevel change. Despite the importance of erosion by surface water for landscape evolution, the hydrological processes involved in generating runoff have been poorly represented in most LEMs to date. Consequently, there is still much to learn about how hydrology affects landscape evolution. Moreover, because landscape features–including slope, curvature, and drainage dissection–are important controls on runoff generation, modeling geomorphic evolution together with runoff generation may provide insights into hydrologic function. To capture these processes, we developed a coupled model of shallow groundwater and fluvial/hillslope evolution where runoff is generated from exfiltration and precipitation on saturated areas. Using this model, I will present new insights into how climate and subsurface hydraulic properties affect topography and how geomorphic evolution is intimately linked to the emergence of variable source area runoff generation.