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Heather M. Wright

I work for the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), a cooperative partnership between the USGS and USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance. In my current role, I conduct international training courses, participate in volcanic crisis response efforts, and perform fundamental scientific research on volcanic processes. 

My research integrates fieldwork with quantitative textural and chemical characterization of volcanic clasts, in order to produce conceptual models of the relevant geologic processes and better understand processes of shallow magma storage, ascent, and eruption. I use a variety of observation strategies and tools, including geologic mapping and stratigraphy; optical, electron and x-ray microscopy; and tools to measure pore fraction and geometry.  I increasingly also work on methods of eruption forecasting and crisis communication for volcanic risk reduction.  

I enjoy the multidisciplinary nature of my job.  And, I am fortunate to work with an amazing group of colleagues at the USGS and at our partner agencies around the world.

Professional Experience

  • 2013-present: Volcano Disaster Assistance Program, Cascades Volcano Observatory, USGS

  • 2012-2013: California Volcano Observatory, USGS

  • 2010-2012: Mendenhall postdoctoral appointment, USGS Menlo Park, CA. Project title "Using crystal and glass compositions from eruptive products of Mt. Mazama (Crater Lake) volcano to examine magma chamber evolution processes; modelling this evolution through time using an integrated geochemical and thermodynamic approach."

  • 2006-2009: Research fellow, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. Project title "Physical volcanology and petrology of the Cerro Galan caldera complex, northern Argentina"

  • 2006: Ph.D. (Geological Sciences) University of Oregon. Thesis title: Physical and chemical signatures of degassing in volcanic systems

  • 1999-2001: Earth Science Intern, ECO, US Geological Survey

  • 1999: Student Intern, USRA, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Education and Certifications

  • PhD, Geological Sciences, University of Oregon

  • BA, Geology Minors in Spanish and Astronomy, Whitman College

Affiliations and Memberships*

  • American Geophysical Union

  • Geological Society of America

  • Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science

  • International Association of Volcanology and Geochemistry of the Earth's Interior

Honors and Awards

  • Presidential Early Career Award for Science and Engineering (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their i

  • George P. L. Walker award of the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, given every two years to an early career scientist in the fields encompassed by IAVCEI,

  • University of Oregon Doctoral Research Fellowship, awarded to the most outstanding doctoral applicant in any UO PhD program by a faculty selection committee, 2005

  • National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship Honorable Mention, 2003

  • University of Oregon Staples Fellowship, 2002

  • Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi National Honorary Science Fraternities, 1999

  • Graduated Magna Cum Laude with Honors in Major, 1999

  • Leeds Prize for Excellence in Geology, 1999

Science and Products

Filter Total Items: 30

Geologic field trip guide to Mount Mazama and Crater Lake Caldera, Oregon

Crater Lake partly fills one of the most spectacular calderas of the world—an 8 by 10 kilometer (km) basin more than 1 km deep formed by collapse of the Mount Mazama volcano during a rapid series of explosive eruptions ~7,700 years ago. Having a maximum depth of 594 meters (m), Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States. Crater Lake National Park, dedicated in 1902, encompasses 645 squar

Authors
Charles R. Bacon, Heather M. Wright
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center, Crater Lake

Field-trip guide to Mount St. Helens, Washington - An overview of the eruptive history and petrology, tephra deposits, 1980 pyroclastic density current deposits, and the crater

This field trip will provide an introduction to several fascinating features of Mount St. Helens. The trip begins with a rigorous hike of about 15 km from the Johnston Ridge Observatory (9 km north-northeast of the crater vent), across the 1980 Pumice Plain, to Windy Ridge (3.6 km northeast of the crater vent) to examine features that document the dynamics and progressive emplacement of pyroclasti
Authors
John S. Pallister, Michael A. Clynne, Heather M. Wright, Alexa R. Van Eaton, James W. Vallance, David R. Sherrod, B. Peter Kokelaar
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Thermal and petrologic constraints on lower crustal melt accumulation under the Salton Sea Geothermal Field

In the Salton Sea region of southern California (USA), concurrent magmatism, extension, subsidence, and sedimentation over the past 0.5 to 1.0 Ma have led to the creation of the Salton Sea Geothermal Field (SSGF)—the second largest and hottest geothermal system in the continental United States—and the small-volume rhyolite eruptions that created the Salton Buttes. In this study, we determine the f
Authors
Ozge Karakas, Josef Dufek, Margaret T. Mangan, Heather M. Wright, Olivier Bachmann
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

The role of crystallization-driven exsolution on the sulfur mass balance in volcanic arc magmas

The release of large amounts of sulfur to the stratosphere during explosive eruptions affects the radiative balance in the atmosphere and consequentially impacts climate for up to several years after the event. Quantitative estimations of the processes that control the mass balance of sulfur between melt, crystals, and vapor bubbles is needed to better understand the potential sulfur yield of indi
Authors
Yanqing Su, Christian Huber, Olivier Bachmann, Zoltán Zajacz, Heather M. Wright, Jorge A. Vazquez
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Juvenile magma recognition and eruptive dynamics inferred from the analysis of ash time series: The 2015 reawakening of Cotopaxi volcano

Forecasting future activity and performing hazard assessments during the reactivation of volcanoes remain great challenges for the volcanological community. On August 14, 2015 Cotopaxi volcano erupted for the first time in 73 years after approximately four months of precursory activity, which included an increase in seismicity, gas emissions, and minor ground deformation. Here we discuss the use o
Authors
H. Elizabeth Gaunt, Benjamin Bernard, Silvana Hidalgo, Antonio Proano, Heather M. Wright, Patricia Mothes, Evelyn Criollo, Ulrich Kueppers
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Magma fracturing and degassing associated with obsidian formation: The explosive–effusive transition

This paper explores the role of melt fracturing in degassing rhyolitic volcanic systems. The Monte Pilato-Rocche Rosse eruptions in Italy evolved from explosive to effusive in style, and H2O content in quenched glasses changed over time from relatively H2O-rich (~ 0.90 wt.%) to H2O-poor dense obsidian (~ 0.10–0.20 wt.%). In addition, healed fractures have been recorded in all different eruptive ma
Authors
Agustin Cabrera, Roberto Weinberg, Heather M. Wright
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Episodic Holocene eruption of the Salton Buttes rhyolites, California, from paleomagnetic, U-Th, and Ar/Ar dating

In the Salton Trough, CA, five rhyolite domes form the Salton Buttes: Mullet Island, Obsidian Butte, Rock Hill, North and South Red Hill, from oldest to youngest. Results presented here include 40Ar/39Ar anorthoclase ages, 238U-230Th zircon crystallization ages, and comparison of remanent paleomagnetic directions with the secular variation curve, which indicate that all domes are Holocene. 238U-23
Authors
Heather M. Wright, Jorge A. Vazquez, Duane E. Champion, Andrew T. Calvert, Margaret T. Mangan, Mark E. Stelten, Kari M. Cooper, Charles Herzig, Alexander Schriener Jr.
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

The effect of pressurized magma chamber growth on melt migration and pre-caldera vent locations through time at Mount Mazama, Crater Lake, Oregon

The pattern of eruptions at long-lived volcanic centers provides a window into the co-evolution of crustal magma transport, tectonic stresses, and unsteady magma generation at depth. Mount Mazama in the Oregon Cascades has seen variable activity over the last 400 ky, including the 50 km3 climactic eruption at ca. 7.7 ka that produced Crater Lake caldera. The physical mechanisms responsible for the
Authors
Leif Karlstrom, Heather M. Wright, Charles R. Bacon
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center, Crater Lake

Pyroclast textural variation as an indicator of eruption column steadiness in andesitic Plinian eruptions at Mt. Ruapehu

Between 27 and 11 cal. ka BP, a transition is observed in Plinian eruptions at Mt. Ruapehu, indicating evolution from non-collapsing (steady and oscillatory) eruption columns to partially collapsing columns (both wet and dry). To determine the causes of these variations over this eruptive interval, we examined lapilli fall deposits from four eruptions representing the climactic phases of each colu
Authors
Natalia Pardo, Shane J. Cronin, Heather M. Wright, C. Ian Schipper, Ian Smith, Bob Stewart
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Compaction and gas loss in welded pyroclastic deposits as revealed by porosity, permeability, and electrical conductivity measurements of the Shevlin Park Tuff

Pyroclastic flows produced by large volcanic eruptions commonly densify after emplacement. Processes of gas escape, compaction, and welding in pyroclastic-flow deposits are controlled by the physical and thermal properties of constituent material. Through measurements of matrix porosity, permeability, and electrical conductivity, we provide a framework for understanding the evolution of pore struc
Authors
Heather M. Wright, Katharine V. Cashman
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center

Sixty thousand years of magmatic volatile history before the caldera-forming eruption of Mount Mazama, Crater Lake, Oregon

The well-documented eruptive history of Mount Mazama, Oregon, provides an excellent opportunity to use pre-eruptive volatile concentrations to study the growth of an explosive silicic magmatic system. Melt inclusions (MI) hosted in pyroxene and plagioclase crystals from eight dacitic–rhyodacitic eruptive deposits (71–7.7 ka) were analyzed to determine variations in volatile-element concentrations
Authors
Heather M. Wright, Charles R. Bacon, Jorge A. Vazquez, Thomas W. Sisson
By
Volcano Hazards Program, Volcano Science Center, Crater Lake

Melt fracturing and healing: A mechanism for degassing and origin of silicic obsidian

We present water content transects across a healed fault in pyroclastic obsidian from Lami pumice cone, Lipari, Italy, using synchrotron Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Results indicate that rhyolite melt degassed through the fault surface. Transects define a trough of low water content coincident with the fault trace, surrounded on either side by high-water-content plateaus. Plateaus ind
Authors
A. Cabrera, R.F. Weinberg, Heather M. Wright, S. Zlotnik, Ray A.F. Cas

Science and Products

*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government