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Helen W. Dow, Ph.D.

Helen Dow is a Research Geologist and Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow at the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center in Santa Cruz.

I am a geomorphologist interested in river systems. I work with Amy East, Jon Warrick, and Joel Sankey to investigate patterns in post-wildfire sediment mobilization over recent decades in California in the context of shifting hydroclimate and an intensifying fire regime. This work has implications for downstream water resources, water quality, aquatic ecosystems, and coastal change.

 

Professional Experience

  • Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow, 2022-Present USGS, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Santa Cruz, CA

  • Postdoctoral Researcher, 2019-2021, ETH Zürich, Switzerland

  • Teaching Assistant, 2016-2019, University of Nevada, Reno, NV

  • Research Assistant, 2014-2015, Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D., Geology, University of Nevada, Reno

  • M.S., Geography, University of Oregon

  • B.S. Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley

Science and Products

Sediment grain size at river outlets along the California coast

Fluvial sediment samples were collected from the lowermost reaches of 21 coastal watersheds in California, in order to characterize surficial grain size of river sediment from deposits that appeared to be recent based on field context. Samples were collected using a trowel to sample the uppermost 10 cm of sediment. Sampled locations included river-deposited sediment, upstream of tidal influence. S
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

Impacts of spontaneous waterfall development on bedrock river longitudinal profile morphology

River profiles are shaped by climatic and tectonic history, lithology, and internal feedbacks between flow hydraulics, sediment transport and erosion. In steep channels, waterfalls may self-form without changes in external forcing (i.e., autogenic formation) and erode at rates faster or slower than an equivalent channel without waterfalls. We use a 1-D numerical model to investigate how self-forme
Authors
Sophie D. Rothman, Joel S. Scheingross, Scott W. McCoy, Helen Willemien Dow
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

Fires, floods and other extreme events – How watershed processes under climate change will shape our coastlines

Ongoing sea-level rise has brought renewed focus on terrestrial sediment supply to the coast because of its strong influence on whether and how long beaches, marshes and other coastal landforms may persist into the future. Here, we summarise findings of sediment discharge from several coastal rivers, revealing that infrequent, large-magnitude events have disproportionate influence on the morphodyn
Authors
Jonathan Warrick, Amy E. East, Helen Willemien Dow
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
How Waterfalls Shape Mountain Rivers

How Waterfalls Shape Mountain Rivers

In new research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, scientists from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and USGS...

Read Article
How Watershed Processes Under Climate Change Will Shape Coastlines

How Watershed Processes Under Climate Change Will Shape Coastlines

The future of many coasts is tied to the delivery of land-based sediment. The natural supply of sediment to coasts from adjacent rivers and watersheds...

Read Article

Science and Products

Sediment grain size at river outlets along the California coast

Fluvial sediment samples were collected from the lowermost reaches of 21 coastal watersheds in California, in order to characterize surficial grain size of river sediment from deposits that appeared to be recent based on field context. Samples were collected using a trowel to sample the uppermost 10 cm of sediment. Sampled locations included river-deposited sediment, upstream of tidal influence. S
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

Impacts of spontaneous waterfall development on bedrock river longitudinal profile morphology

River profiles are shaped by climatic and tectonic history, lithology, and internal feedbacks between flow hydraulics, sediment transport and erosion. In steep channels, waterfalls may self-form without changes in external forcing (i.e., autogenic formation) and erode at rates faster or slower than an equivalent channel without waterfalls. We use a 1-D numerical model to investigate how self-forme
Authors
Sophie D. Rothman, Joel S. Scheingross, Scott W. McCoy, Helen Willemien Dow
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

Fires, floods and other extreme events – How watershed processes under climate change will shape our coastlines

Ongoing sea-level rise has brought renewed focus on terrestrial sediment supply to the coast because of its strong influence on whether and how long beaches, marshes and other coastal landforms may persist into the future. Here, we summarise findings of sediment discharge from several coastal rivers, revealing that infrequent, large-magnitude events have disproportionate influence on the morphodyn
Authors
Jonathan Warrick, Amy E. East, Helen Willemien Dow
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
How Waterfalls Shape Mountain Rivers

How Waterfalls Shape Mountain Rivers

In new research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, scientists from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and USGS...

Read Article
How Watershed Processes Under Climate Change Will Shape Coastlines

How Watershed Processes Under Climate Change Will Shape Coastlines

The future of many coasts is tied to the delivery of land-based sediment. The natural supply of sediment to coasts from adjacent rivers and watersheds...

Read Article