John Barron, Ph.D.
John is a Scientist Emeritus with the Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science center in Menlo Park, CA.
John is a marine micropaleontologist (diatoms) with expertise in and biostratigraphy and paleoceanography. His biostratigraphic expertise extends from the Late Cretaceous to the Holocene, with an emphasis on the North Pacific, eastern equatorial Pacific, and Southern Ocean. John's paleoclimate expertise is mostly on the Holocene of the North Pacific, ranging from the Gulf of California to the Gulf of Alaska. As an Emeritus Research Geologist, his research is directed toward developing and comparing Holocene sea surface temperature records in these eastern North Pacific regions with hydroclimate records in western North America and suggesting links.
Professional Experience
2012- 2016 (June) - Project Chief, Pacific Ocean Climate Variability: Effects on North American Precipitation Patterns Project, Climate and Land Use Change, Research & Development Program
1995-1997 – Project Chief: Pliocene, Research, Interpretation, and Synoptic Mapping(PRISM), Global Change & Climate History Program, Volcano Hazards Team, Menlo Park
1984-1995 – Project Chief and micropaleontologist of various USGS biochronology projects providing support to USGS mapping projects, Paleontology & Stratigraphy Branch
1974-1983 –Micropaleontolgist (diatoms), Paleontology & Stratigraphy Branch
Scientific Cruise Experience
Deep Sea Drilling Project (Leg 57-Japan; 63 (California margin; 85 (eastern equatorial Pacific); micropaleontologist
Ocean Drilling Project 119 (Antarctic margin, Indian Ocean; Co-Chief Scientist), 145 (North Pacific transect, micropaleotologist).
Education and Certifications
1969 BS (Geology), University of California, Los Angeles
1974 PhD (Geology), University of California, Los Angeles
Honors and Awards
2011 - The Brady Medal of the Micropalaeological Society (UK)
1994 - U.S. Dept. of Interior Meritorious Service Award
1986 - Charles Schuchert Award - from the Paleontological Society for excellence and promise in paleontology for scientists under 40 years old
Science and Products
Methods and applications of Cenozoic marine diatom biostratigraphy
Age, stratigraphy, and correlations of the late Neogene Purisima Formation, central California coast ranges
Development of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr based on diatoms and silicoflagellates
Development of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr based on diatoms and silicoflagellates
Solar forcing of Gulf of California climate during the past 2000 yr suggested by diatoms and silicoflagellates
Diatom biochronology for the early Miocene of the equatorial Pacific
Scanning electron microscope studies of some early Miocene diatoms from the equatorial Pacific Ocean with descriptions of two new species, Actinocyclus jouseae Barron and Actinocyclus nigriniae Barron
Paleontology of the upper Eocene to quaternary postimpact section in the USGS-NASA Langley core, Hampton, Virginia
Paleoceanographic history of the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, during the past 15,000 years based on diatoms, silicoflagellates, and biogenic sediments
High resolution climate of the past 3,500 years of coastal northernmost California
Oligocene and earliest Miocene diatom biostratigraphy of ODP leg 199 site 1220, equatorial Pacific
High resolution paleoceanography of the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, during the past 15 000 years
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 114
Methods and applications of Cenozoic marine diatom biostratigraphy
Diatoms provide the chief Cenozoic biostratigraphic tool in marine sediments beneath high primary productivity zones, especially where calcareous fossils are rare or poorly preserved. Diatom biostratigraphy, which is based on originations and extinctions of unique taxa, is especially useful in circum-Antarctic, equatorial Pacific, and high latitude North Pacific marine successions, which are availAuthorsReed Scherer, Andrey Yu. Gladenkov, John A. BarronAge, stratigraphy, and correlations of the late Neogene Purisima Formation, central California coast ranges
The Purisima Formation is an important upper Miocene and Pliocene stratigraphic unit in central California, cropping out from the coast at Point Reyes north of San Francisco to more extensive exposures in the Santa Cruz Mountains to the south. The fine-grained rocks in the lower parts of the Purisima Formation record a latest Miocene transgressive event, whereas the middle and upper parts of the fAuthorsCharles L. Powell, John A. Barron, Andrei M. Sarna-Wojcicki, Joseph C. Clark, Frank A. Perry, Earl E. Brabb, Robert J. FleckDevelopment of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr based on diatoms and silicoflagellates
Detailed diatom and silicoflagellates records in three cores from the offshore region of southern Oregon to central California reveal the evolution of the northern part of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr. The early Holocene, prior to ∼ 9 ka, was characterized by relatively warm sea surface temperatures (SST), owing to enhanced northerly flow of the subtropical waters comparable toAuthorsJohn A. Barron, David BukryDevelopment of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr based on diatoms and silicoflagellates
Detailed diatom and silicoflagellates records in three cores from the offshore region of southern Oregon to central California reveal the evolution of the northern part of the California Current during the past 12,000 yr. The early Holocene, prior to ∼ 9 ka, was characterized by relatively warm sea surface temperatures (SST), owing to enhanced northerly flow of the subtropical waters comparable toAuthorsJohn A. Barron, David BukrySolar forcing of Gulf of California climate during the past 2000 yr suggested by diatoms and silicoflagellates
High-resolution records of the past 2000 yr are compared in a north–south transect (28° N to 24° N) of three cores from the eastern slopes of the Guaymas, Carmen, and Pescadero Basins of the Gulf of California (hereafter referred to as the “Gulf”). Evenly-spaced samples from the varved sediments in each core allow sample resolution ranging from ∼ 16 to ∼ 37 yr.Diatoms and silicoflagellates captureAuthorsJohn A. Barron, David BukryDiatom biochronology for the early Miocene of the equatorial Pacific
The latest Oligocene and early Miocene diatom biostratigraphy (24.4 to 16.9 Ma) of equatorial Pacific ODP Site 199-1219 is documented and tied to paleomagnetic stratigraphy in 69 samples, allowing an average age resolution of about 100 kyrs. An updated taxonomy is provided and most of the 71 taxa are illustrated in 9 photographic plates. The equatorial Pacific diatom zonation for the latest OligocAuthorsJohn A. BarronScanning electron microscope studies of some early Miocene diatoms from the equatorial Pacific Ocean with descriptions of two new species, Actinocyclus jouseae Barron and Actinocyclus nigriniae Barron
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and light microscope (LM) studies are used to propose and describe two new species, Actinocyclus jouseae Barron, sp. nov. and Actinocyclus nigriniae Barron, sp. nov. from lower Miocene sediments from equatorial Pacific ODP Site 1219. Parallel SEM and LM studies reveal that Thalassiosira bukryi Barron should be transferred to Azpeitia and suggest that ActinocyclusAuthorsJohn A. BarronPaleontology of the upper Eocene to quaternary postimpact section in the USGS-NASA Langley core, Hampton, Virginia
The USGS-NASA Langley corehole was drilled in 2000 in Hampton, Va. The core serves as a benchmark for the study of calcareous nannofossils, dinoflagellates, diatoms and silico flagellates, mollusks, ostracodes, planktonic foraminifera and bolboformids, and vertebrate remains in the upper Eocene, Oligocene, Miocene, and Pliocene sediments in southeastern Virginia. These sediments were deposited aftAuthorsLucy E. Edwards, John A. Barron, David Bukry, Laurel M. Bybell, Thomas M. Cronin, C. Wylie Poag, Robert E. Weems, G. Lynn WingardPaleoceanographic history of the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, during the past 15,000 years based on diatoms, silicoflagellates, and biogenic sediments
High-resolution records of calcium carbonate, biogenic opal, diatoms, and silicoflagellates from western Guaymas Basin gravity core GGC55 and piston core JPC56 and eastern Guaymas Basin DSDP Site 480 reveal a complex paleoceanographic history of the central Gulf of California during the past 15,000 years. Prior to ∼ 6.2 ka, the eastern and western Guaymas Basin proxy records were remarkably similaAuthorsJohn A. Barron, David Bukry, Walter E. DeanHigh resolution climate of the past 3,500 years of coastal northernmost California
No abstract available.AuthorsJohn A. Barron, Linda E. Heusser, Clark AlexanderOligocene and earliest Miocene diatom biostratigraphy of ODP leg 199 site 1220, equatorial Pacific
Completion of studies on material collected during Ocean Drilling Program Leg 199 at Site 1220 in the equatorial Pacific allows calibration of the ranges of >35 stratigraphically important diatoms to paleomagnetic stratigraphy for the Oligocene and earliest Miocene (~33.5–21.5 Ma). The taxonomy of these taxa is reviewed, and age estimates of their first and last occurrences are compiled. The diatoAuthorsJohn A. Barron, Elisabeth Fourtanier, S. M. BohatyHigh resolution paleoceanography of the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, during the past 15 000 years
Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 480 (27??54.10???N, 111??39.34???W; 655 m water depth) contains a high resolution record of paleoceanographic change of the past 15 000 years for the Guaymas Basin, a region of very high diatom productivity within the central Gulf of California. Analyses of diatoms and silicoflagellates were completed on samples spaced every 40-50 yr, whereas ICP-AES geochemical analAuthorsJ.A. Barron, D. Bukry, J. L. Bischoff - News