Daniel Muhs
I study geomorphology, soils and Quaternary stratigraphy to reconstruct paleoclimates over the past two and a half million years of geologic time.
My main study areas are in the central and western USA (Mississippi Valley, Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, desert Southwest, Pacific Coast and Alaska), but I have also worked in the Caribbean, Spain and Israel. My main interests are in origin and paleoclimatic significance of dune fields, stratigraphy and paleopedology of loess, effects of long-range-transported dust on soils, the atmosphere, oceans and ecosystems, and sea level history.
Education:
University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 1977-1980 (Ph.D., Physical geography/Geology)
University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 1973-1975 (M.S., Physical geography/Soil science)
University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 1972-1973 (B.A., Physical geography)
University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 1970-1972 (B.A., English, History)
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 1968-1970 (English)
Professional experience:
1995-date: Geologist, Geology and Environmental Change Science Center, USGS, Denver, CO
1985-1995: Geologist, Branch of Isotope Geology, USGS, Denver, CO
1983-1984: Soil Scientist with USGS while on leave-of-absence with the University of Wisconsin to accept National Research Council Research Associateship, Denver, Colorado.
1980-1985: Assistant and Associate Professor of Geography, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
1978-1980, part-time Soil Scientist, U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Central Regional Geology.
1977-1979: Instructor (while a Ph.D student), Department of Geography, University of Colorado at Boulder and University of Colorado at Denver
1975-1976: Soil Scientist, U.S. Soil Conservation Service/Iowa State University
Science and Products
Geologic Records of High Sea Levels
Eolian Sediments in the Greater Platte River Basins, Great Plains
Strontium isotope, amino acid, and fossil taxonomy data to aid in identifying instances of marine terrace reoccupation on Anacapa and San Miguel Islands, California, USA
Data release for Late glacial-Younger Dryas climate in interior Alaska as inferred from the isotope values of land snail shells
Uranium and Strontium geochronology data for marine terraces on Santa Rosa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
A tale of two islands: Tectonic and orbital controls on marine terrace reoccupation, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
Late glacial–Younger Dryas climate in interior Alaska as inferred from the isotope values of land snail shells
A complex record of last interglacial sea-level history and paleozoogeography, Santa Rosa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
MIS 5e sea-level history along the Pacific coast of North America
Were humans and mammoths on the Channel Islands at the same time?
Long-term African dust delivery to the eastern Atlantic Ocean from the Sahara and Sahel regions: Evidence from Quaternary paleosols on the Canary Islands, Spain
The marine terraces of Santa Cruz Island, California: Implications for glacial isostatic adjustment models of last-interglacial sea-level history
Eolian sediments
Soils and paleosols
Testing glacial isostatic adjustment models of last-interglacial sea level history in the Bahamas and Bermuda
Late Quaternary sea-level history of Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, USA: A test of tectonic uplift and glacial isostatic adjustment models
The antiquity of the Sahara Desert: New evidence from the mineralogy and geochemistry of Pliocene paleosols on the Canary Islands, Spain
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Geologic Records of High Sea Levels
Eolian Sediments in the Greater Platte River Basins, Great Plains
Strontium isotope, amino acid, and fossil taxonomy data to aid in identifying instances of marine terrace reoccupation on Anacapa and San Miguel Islands, California, USA
Data release for Late glacial-Younger Dryas climate in interior Alaska as inferred from the isotope values of land snail shells
Uranium and Strontium geochronology data for marine terraces on Santa Rosa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
A tale of two islands: Tectonic and orbital controls on marine terrace reoccupation, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
Late glacial–Younger Dryas climate in interior Alaska as inferred from the isotope values of land snail shells
A complex record of last interglacial sea-level history and paleozoogeography, Santa Rosa Island, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
MIS 5e sea-level history along the Pacific coast of North America
Were humans and mammoths on the Channel Islands at the same time?
Long-term African dust delivery to the eastern Atlantic Ocean from the Sahara and Sahel regions: Evidence from Quaternary paleosols on the Canary Islands, Spain
The marine terraces of Santa Cruz Island, California: Implications for glacial isostatic adjustment models of last-interglacial sea-level history
Eolian sediments
Soils and paleosols
Testing glacial isostatic adjustment models of last-interglacial sea level history in the Bahamas and Bermuda
Late Quaternary sea-level history of Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, USA: A test of tectonic uplift and glacial isostatic adjustment models
The antiquity of the Sahara Desert: New evidence from the mineralogy and geochemistry of Pliocene paleosols on the Canary Islands, Spain
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.