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Katherine Barnhart

Katy Barnhart is a Research Civil Engineer in the Landslide Hazards program.  

Katy does research on the mechanisms and impacts of landslide runout, primarily using numerical simulation. Her current work focuses on postfire debris flows and landslide tsunamis. 

Professional Experience

  • 2020-present: Research Civil Engineer, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center 

  • 2020-2021: Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow 

  • 2018-2020: National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Colorado at Boulder, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Environment and Department of Geological Sciences

  • 2016-2018: Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Colorado, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Environment and Department of Geological Sciences

  • 2015-2016: Postdoctoral Fellow, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania 

Education and Certifications

  • University of Colorado, Ph.D., 2015, Geological Sciences

  • University of Colorado, M.S., 2010, Geological Sciences

  • Princeton University, B.S.E., 2008, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Honors and Awards

  • CSDMS Terrestrial Working Group Member Spotlight Award, 2020

  • USGS Mendenhall Fellowship, 2020

  • NSF-EAR Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2017

  • NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, 2012-2015

  • NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Honorable Mention, 2010

  • W. Taylor Thom Jr. Prize, Princeton Department of Civil Engineering, 2008

  • Arthur F. Buddington Award, Princeton Department of Geological Sciences, 2008

Science and Products

Filter Total Items: 16

Tadpole Fire Field Measurements following the 8 September 2020 Debris Flow, Gila National Forest, NM Tadpole Fire Field Measurements following the 8 September 2020 Debris Flow, Gila National Forest, NM

This data release contains data summarizing observations within and adjacent to the Tadpole Fire, which burned from 6 June to 4 July 2020 in the Gila National Forest, NM. This monitoring data were focused on debris flows triggered on 8 September 2020 in four drainage basins (TAD1, TAD2, TAD3, and TAD4). Rainfall data (1a_rain_geophones.csv) are provided in a comma-separated value (CSV)...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Summary This data release contains postprocessed model output from a simulation of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A simulated displacement wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm fjord. We consider the wave propagation in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound (area of interest...
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains postprocessed model output from simulations of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A modeled tsunami wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm Fjord. This wave propagated through Prince William Sound and then into Passage Canal east of Whittier. Here we consider only the largest...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Select model results from simulations of hypothetical rapid failures of landslides into Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska Select model results from simulations of hypothetical rapid failures of landslides into Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains model output from simulations presented in the associated Open-File Report (Barnhart and others, 2021). In this report, we present model results from four simulations (scenarios C-290, NC-290, C-689, NC-689, Table 1) of hypothetical rapid movement of landslides into adjacent fjord water at Barry Arm, Alaska using the D-Claw model (George and Iverson, 2014...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
No results found.
Filter Total Items: 27

Satellite interferometry landslide detection and preliminary tsunamigenic plausibility assessment in Prince William Sound, southcentral Alaska Satellite interferometry landslide detection and preliminary tsunamigenic plausibility assessment in Prince William Sound, southcentral Alaska

Regional mapping of actively deforming landslides, including measurements of landslide velocity, is integral for hazard assessments in paraglacial environments. These inventories are also critical for describing the potential impacts that the warming effects of climate change have on slope instability in mountainous and cryospheric terrain. The objective of this study is to identify slow...
Authors
Lauren N. Schaefer, Jinwook Kim, Dennis M. Staley, Zhong Lu, Katherine R. Barnhart
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center

Steady-state forms of channel profiles shaped by debris flow and fluvial processes Steady-state forms of channel profiles shaped by debris flow and fluvial processes

Debris flows regularly traverse bedrock channels that dissect steep landscapes, but our understanding of bedrock erosion by debris flows and their impact on steepland morphology is still rudimentary. Quantitative models of steep bedrock channel networks are based on geomorphic transport laws designed to represent erosion by water-dominated flows. To quantify the impact of debris flow...
Authors
Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Odin Marc, William Struble, Katherine R. Barnhart
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Forecasting the inundation of postfire debris flows Forecasting the inundation of postfire debris flows

In the semi-arid regions of the western United States, postfire debris flows are typically runoff generated. The U.S. Geological Survey has been studying the mechanisms of postfire debris-flow initiation for multiple decades to generate operational models for forecasting the timing, location, and magnitude of postfire debris flows. Here we discuss challenges and progress for extending...
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Ryan P Jones, David L. George, Francis K. Rengers, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Runout model evaluation based on back-calculation of building damage Runout model evaluation based on back-calculation of building damage

We evaluated the ability of three debris-flow runout models (RAMMS, FLO2D and D-Claw) to predict the number of damaged buildings in simulations of the 9 January 2019 Montecito, California, debris-flow event. Observations of building damage after the event were combined with OpenStreetMap building footprints to construct a database of all potentially impacted buildings. At the estimated...
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Debris-flow process controls on steepland morphology in the San Gabriel Mountains, California Debris-flow process controls on steepland morphology in the San Gabriel Mountains, California

Steep landscapes evolve largely by debris flows, in addition to fluvial and hillslope processes. Abundant field observations document that debris flows incise valley bottoms and transport substantial sediment volumes, yet their contributions to steepland morphology remain uncertain. This has, in turn, limited the development of debris-flow incision rate formulations that produce...
Authors
William Struble, Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Katherine R. Barnhart, Odin Marc
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

The influence of large woody debris on post-wildfire debris flow sediment storage The influence of large woody debris on post-wildfire debris flow sediment storage

Debris flows transport large quantities of water and granular material, such as sediment and wood, and this mixture can have devastating impacts on life and infrastructure. The proportion of large woody debris (LWD) incorporated into debris flows can be enhanced in forested areas recently burned by wildfire, because wood recruitment into channels accelerates in burned forests. In this...
Authors
Francis K. Rengers, Luke A. McGuire, Katherine R. Barnhart, Ann Youberg, Daniel Cadol, Alexander Gorr, Olivia J. Hoch, Rebecca Beers, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

Wickert, A.D., Barnhart, K.R., Armstrong, W.H., Romero, M., Schulz, B., Ng, G.-H.C., Sandell, C.T., La Frenierre, J., Penprase, S.B., Van Wyk de Vries, M., and MacGregor, K.R., 2023, Automated ablation stakes to constrain temperature-index melt models: Annals of Glaciology, v. 64, no. 92, p. 425–438, https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.21.
Gasparini, N.M., Forte, A.M., and Barnhart, K.R., 2024, Short Communication: Numerically simulated time to steady state is not a reliable measure of landscape response time: Earth Surface Dynamics, v. 12, no. 6, p. 1227–1242, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024.
Nudurupati, S.S., Istanbulluoglu, E., Tucker, G.E., Gasparini, N.M., Hobley, D.E.J., Hutton, E.W.H., Barnhart, K.R., and Adams, J.M., On transient semi-arid ecosystem dynamics using Landlab: Vegetation shifts, topographic refugia, and response to climate. Water Resources Research, 59, e2021WR031179. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031179.
Litwin, David G, Tucker, G.E., Barnhart, K.R., and Harman, C.J., Reply to comment by Anand et al. on ‘Groundwater affects the geomorphic and hydrologic properties of coevolved landscapes’: Journal of Geophysical Research—Earth Surface, 127, e2022JF006722. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JF006722.
Litwin, D.G., Tucker, G.E., Barnhart, K.R., and Harman, C.J., 2022, Groundwater Affects the Geomorphic and Hydrologic Properties of Coevolved Landscapes: Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, v. 127, no. 1, p. e2021JF006239, doi: 10.1029/2021JF006239.
Tucker, G.E., Hutton, E.W.H., Piper, M.D., Campforts, B., Gan, T., Barnhart, K.R., Kettner, A.J., Overeem, I., Peckham, S.D., McCready, L., and Syvitski, J., 2022, Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System: a community platform for numerical modeling of Earth surface processes: Geoscientific Model Development, v. 15, no. 4, p. 1413–1439, doi: 10.5194/gmd-15-1413-2022.
Wiens, A., Kleiber, W., Nychka, D., and Barnhart, K. R. “Nonrigid Registration Using Gaussian Processes
and Local Likelihood Estimation”. In: Mathematical Geosciences (2021). DOI: 10.1007/s11004-
020-09917-7.
Anderson, S.P., Kelly, P.J., Hoffman, N., Barnhart, K., Befus, K. and Ouimet, W. (2021). Is This Steady State? Weathering and Critical Zone Architecture in Gordon Gulch, Colorado Front Range. In Hydrogeology, Chemical Weathering, and Soil Formation (eds A. Hunt, M. Egli and B. Faybishenko). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119563952.ch13
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Projections of landscape evolution on a 10,000 year timescale with assessment and partitioning of uncertainty sources”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), 2020JF005795. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JF005795.
A. M. Pfeiffer, K. R. Barnhart, J. A. Czuba, and E. W. H. Hutton. “NetworkSediment-Transporter: A Landlab component for bed material transport through river networks”. Journal of Open Source Software 5.53 (2020), p. 2341. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.02341.
Barnhart, K. R., Hutton, E. W. H., Tucker, G. E., Gasparini, N. M., Istanbulluoglu, E., Hobley, D. E. J., Lyons, N. J., Mouchene, M., Nudurupati, S. S., Adams, J. M., and Bandaragoda, C.: Short communication: Landlab v2.0: a software package for Earth surface dynamics, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 379–397, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, 2020.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 1, conceptualization and sensitivity analysis”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2018JF004961. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004961.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 2, calibration and validation”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2018JF004963. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004963.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M.W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 3, Determining parameter ranges for select mature geomorphic transport laws and connecting changes in fluvial erodibility to changes in climate”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2019JF005287. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JF005287.
D. Litwin, G. Tucker, K. R. Barnhart, and C. Harman. “GroundwaterDupuitPercolator: A Landlab component for groundwater flow”. Journal of Open Source Software 5.46 (2020), 1935. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01935.
K. R. Barnhart, R. C. Glade, C. M. Shobe, and G. E. Tucker. “Terrainbento 1.0: a Python package for multi-model analysis in long-term drainage basin evolution”. Geoscientific Model Development 12.4 (2019), pp. 1267–1297. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-1267-2019.
K. R. Barnhart, E.W. H. Hutton, and G. E. Tucker. “umami: A Python package for Earth surface dynamics objective function construction”. Journal of Open Source Software 4.42 (2019). https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01776.
C. J. Bandaragoda, A. Castronova, E. Istanbulluoglu, R. Strauch, S. S. Nudurupati, J. Phuong, J. M. Adams, N. M. Gasparini, K. R. Barnhart, E. Hutton, D. E. J. Hobley, N. J. Lyons, G. E. Tucker, D. G. Tarboton, R. Idaszak, and S. Wang. “Enabling collaborative numerical Modeling in Earth sciences using Knowledge Infrastructure”. Environmental Modelling and Software (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2019.03.020.
A. Wiens, W. Kleiber, K. R. Barnhart, and D. Sain. “Surface Estimation for Multiple Misaligned Point Sets”. Mathematical Geosciences 39.2 (Apr. 2019), pp. 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11004-019-09802-y.
K. R. Barnhart, E. Hutton, N. Gasparini, and G. Tucker. “Lithology: A Landlab submodule for spatially variable rock properties”. Journal of Open Source Software 3.30 (2018), pp. 979–2. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.00979.
M. Bendixen, L. L. Iversen, A. A. Bjork, B. Elberling, A.Westergaard-Nielsen, I. Overeem, K. R. Barnhart, S. A. Khan, J. E. Box, J. Abermann, K. Langley, and A. Kroon. “Delta progradation in Greenland driven by increasing glacial mass loss”. Nature 550.7674 (2017), pp. 101–104. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23873.
C. M. Shobe, G. E. Tucker, and K. R. Barnhart. “The SPACE 1.0 model: a Landlab component for 2-D calculation of sediment transport, bedrock erosion, and landscape evolution”. Geoscientific Model Development 10.12 (2017), pp. 4577–4604. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-4577-2017.
K. R. Barnhart, C. R. Miller, I. Overeem, and J. E. Kay. “Mapping the future expansion of Arctic open water”. Nature Climate Change (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2848.
R. C. Mahon, J. B. Shaw, K. R. Barnhart, D. E. Hobley, and B. McElroy. “Quantifying the stratigraphic completeness of delta shoreline trajectories”. Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface 120.5 (2015), pp. 799–817. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JF003298.
K. R. Barnhart, R. S. Anderson, I. Overeem, C. Wobus, G. D. Clow, and F. E. Urban. “Modeling erosion of ice-rich permafrost bluffs along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast”. Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface 119.5 (2014), pp. 1155–1179. https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JF002845.
K. R. Barnhart, I. Overeem, and R. S. Anderson. “The effect of changing sea ice on the physical vulnerability of Arctic coasts”. The Cryosphere 8 (2014), pp. 1777–1799. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1777-2014.
K. R. Barnhart, K. H. Mahan, T. J. Blackburn, S. A. Bowring, and F. O. Dudas. “Deep crustal xenoliths from central Montana, USA: Implications for the timing and mechanisms of high-velocity lower crust formation”. Geosphere (2012). https://doi.org/10.1130/GES00765.1.
K. R. Barnhart, P. J. Walsh, L. S. Hollister, C. G. Daniel, and C. Andronicos. “Decompression during Late Proterozoic Al2SiO5 Triple-Point Metamorphism at Cerro Colorado, New Mexico”. The Journal of Geology (2012). https://doi.org/10.1086/665793.
T. J. Blackburn, S. A. Bowring, J. T. Perron, K. H. Mahan, F. O. Dudas, and K. R. Barnhart. “An Exhumation History of Continents over Billion-Year Time Scales”. Science 335.6064 (2012), pp. 73–76. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1213496.

**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

Filter Total Items: 16

Tadpole Fire Field Measurements following the 8 September 2020 Debris Flow, Gila National Forest, NM Tadpole Fire Field Measurements following the 8 September 2020 Debris Flow, Gila National Forest, NM

This data release contains data summarizing observations within and adjacent to the Tadpole Fire, which burned from 6 June to 4 July 2020 in the Gila National Forest, NM. This monitoring data were focused on debris flows triggered on 8 September 2020 in four drainage basins (TAD1, TAD2, TAD3, and TAD4). Rainfall data (1a_rain_geophones.csv) are provided in a comma-separated value (CSV)...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Summary This data release contains postprocessed model output from a simulation of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A simulated displacement wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm fjord. We consider the wave propagation in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound (area of interest...
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains postprocessed model output from simulations of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A modeled tsunami wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm Fjord. This wave propagated through Prince William Sound and then into Passage Canal east of Whittier. Here we consider only the largest...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Select model results from simulations of hypothetical rapid failures of landslides into Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska Select model results from simulations of hypothetical rapid failures of landslides into Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains model output from simulations presented in the associated Open-File Report (Barnhart and others, 2021). In this report, we present model results from four simulations (scenarios C-290, NC-290, C-689, NC-689, Table 1) of hypothetical rapid movement of landslides into adjacent fjord water at Barry Arm, Alaska using the D-Claw model (George and Iverson, 2014...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
No results found.
Filter Total Items: 27

Satellite interferometry landslide detection and preliminary tsunamigenic plausibility assessment in Prince William Sound, southcentral Alaska Satellite interferometry landslide detection and preliminary tsunamigenic plausibility assessment in Prince William Sound, southcentral Alaska

Regional mapping of actively deforming landslides, including measurements of landslide velocity, is integral for hazard assessments in paraglacial environments. These inventories are also critical for describing the potential impacts that the warming effects of climate change have on slope instability in mountainous and cryospheric terrain. The objective of this study is to identify slow...
Authors
Lauren N. Schaefer, Jinwook Kim, Dennis M. Staley, Zhong Lu, Katherine R. Barnhart
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center

Steady-state forms of channel profiles shaped by debris flow and fluvial processes Steady-state forms of channel profiles shaped by debris flow and fluvial processes

Debris flows regularly traverse bedrock channels that dissect steep landscapes, but our understanding of bedrock erosion by debris flows and their impact on steepland morphology is still rudimentary. Quantitative models of steep bedrock channel networks are based on geomorphic transport laws designed to represent erosion by water-dominated flows. To quantify the impact of debris flow...
Authors
Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Odin Marc, William Struble, Katherine R. Barnhart
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Forecasting the inundation of postfire debris flows Forecasting the inundation of postfire debris flows

In the semi-arid regions of the western United States, postfire debris flows are typically runoff generated. The U.S. Geological Survey has been studying the mechanisms of postfire debris-flow initiation for multiple decades to generate operational models for forecasting the timing, location, and magnitude of postfire debris flows. Here we discuss challenges and progress for extending...
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Ryan P Jones, David L. George, Francis K. Rengers, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Runout model evaluation based on back-calculation of building damage Runout model evaluation based on back-calculation of building damage

We evaluated the ability of three debris-flow runout models (RAMMS, FLO2D and D-Claw) to predict the number of damaged buildings in simulations of the 9 January 2019 Montecito, California, debris-flow event. Observations of building damage after the event were combined with OpenStreetMap building footprints to construct a database of all potentially impacted buildings. At the estimated...
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Debris-flow process controls on steepland morphology in the San Gabriel Mountains, California Debris-flow process controls on steepland morphology in the San Gabriel Mountains, California

Steep landscapes evolve largely by debris flows, in addition to fluvial and hillslope processes. Abundant field observations document that debris flows incise valley bottoms and transport substantial sediment volumes, yet their contributions to steepland morphology remain uncertain. This has, in turn, limited the development of debris-flow incision rate formulations that produce...
Authors
William Struble, Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Katherine R. Barnhart, Odin Marc
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

The influence of large woody debris on post-wildfire debris flow sediment storage The influence of large woody debris on post-wildfire debris flow sediment storage

Debris flows transport large quantities of water and granular material, such as sediment and wood, and this mixture can have devastating impacts on life and infrastructure. The proportion of large woody debris (LWD) incorporated into debris flows can be enhanced in forested areas recently burned by wildfire, because wood recruitment into channels accelerates in burned forests. In this...
Authors
Francis K. Rengers, Luke A. McGuire, Katherine R. Barnhart, Ann Youberg, Daniel Cadol, Alexander Gorr, Olivia J. Hoch, Rebecca Beers, Jason W. Kean
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

Wickert, A.D., Barnhart, K.R., Armstrong, W.H., Romero, M., Schulz, B., Ng, G.-H.C., Sandell, C.T., La Frenierre, J., Penprase, S.B., Van Wyk de Vries, M., and MacGregor, K.R., 2023, Automated ablation stakes to constrain temperature-index melt models: Annals of Glaciology, v. 64, no. 92, p. 425–438, https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2024.21.
Gasparini, N.M., Forte, A.M., and Barnhart, K.R., 2024, Short Communication: Numerically simulated time to steady state is not a reliable measure of landscape response time: Earth Surface Dynamics, v. 12, no. 6, p. 1227–1242, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024.
Nudurupati, S.S., Istanbulluoglu, E., Tucker, G.E., Gasparini, N.M., Hobley, D.E.J., Hutton, E.W.H., Barnhart, K.R., and Adams, J.M., On transient semi-arid ecosystem dynamics using Landlab: Vegetation shifts, topographic refugia, and response to climate. Water Resources Research, 59, e2021WR031179. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031179.
Litwin, David G, Tucker, G.E., Barnhart, K.R., and Harman, C.J., Reply to comment by Anand et al. on ‘Groundwater affects the geomorphic and hydrologic properties of coevolved landscapes’: Journal of Geophysical Research—Earth Surface, 127, e2022JF006722. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JF006722.
Litwin, D.G., Tucker, G.E., Barnhart, K.R., and Harman, C.J., 2022, Groundwater Affects the Geomorphic and Hydrologic Properties of Coevolved Landscapes: Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, v. 127, no. 1, p. e2021JF006239, doi: 10.1029/2021JF006239.
Tucker, G.E., Hutton, E.W.H., Piper, M.D., Campforts, B., Gan, T., Barnhart, K.R., Kettner, A.J., Overeem, I., Peckham, S.D., McCready, L., and Syvitski, J., 2022, Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System: a community platform for numerical modeling of Earth surface processes: Geoscientific Model Development, v. 15, no. 4, p. 1413–1439, doi: 10.5194/gmd-15-1413-2022.
Wiens, A., Kleiber, W., Nychka, D., and Barnhart, K. R. “Nonrigid Registration Using Gaussian Processes
and Local Likelihood Estimation”. In: Mathematical Geosciences (2021). DOI: 10.1007/s11004-
020-09917-7.
Anderson, S.P., Kelly, P.J., Hoffman, N., Barnhart, K., Befus, K. and Ouimet, W. (2021). Is This Steady State? Weathering and Critical Zone Architecture in Gordon Gulch, Colorado Front Range. In Hydrogeology, Chemical Weathering, and Soil Formation (eds A. Hunt, M. Egli and B. Faybishenko). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119563952.ch13
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Projections of landscape evolution on a 10,000 year timescale with assessment and partitioning of uncertainty sources”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), 2020JF005795. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JF005795.
A. M. Pfeiffer, K. R. Barnhart, J. A. Czuba, and E. W. H. Hutton. “NetworkSediment-Transporter: A Landlab component for bed material transport through river networks”. Journal of Open Source Software 5.53 (2020), p. 2341. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.02341.
Barnhart, K. R., Hutton, E. W. H., Tucker, G. E., Gasparini, N. M., Istanbulluoglu, E., Hobley, D. E. J., Lyons, N. J., Mouchene, M., Nudurupati, S. S., Adams, J. M., and Bandaragoda, C.: Short communication: Landlab v2.0: a software package for Earth surface dynamics, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 379–397, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, 2020.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 1, conceptualization and sensitivity analysis”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2018JF004961. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004961.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M. W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 2, calibration and validation”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2018JF004963. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004963.
K. R. Barnhart, G. E. Tucker, S. Doty, C. M. Shobe, R. C. Glade, M.W. Rossi, and M. C. Hill. “Inverting topography for landscape evolution model process representation: Part 3, Determining parameter ranges for select mature geomorphic transport laws and connecting changes in fluvial erodibility to changes in climate”. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface (2020), e2019JF005287. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JF005287.
D. Litwin, G. Tucker, K. R. Barnhart, and C. Harman. “GroundwaterDupuitPercolator: A Landlab component for groundwater flow”. Journal of Open Source Software 5.46 (2020), 1935. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01935.
K. R. Barnhart, R. C. Glade, C. M. Shobe, and G. E. Tucker. “Terrainbento 1.0: a Python package for multi-model analysis in long-term drainage basin evolution”. Geoscientific Model Development 12.4 (2019), pp. 1267–1297. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-1267-2019.
K. R. Barnhart, E.W. H. Hutton, and G. E. Tucker. “umami: A Python package for Earth surface dynamics objective function construction”. Journal of Open Source Software 4.42 (2019). https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01776.
C. J. Bandaragoda, A. Castronova, E. Istanbulluoglu, R. Strauch, S. S. Nudurupati, J. Phuong, J. M. Adams, N. M. Gasparini, K. R. Barnhart, E. Hutton, D. E. J. Hobley, N. J. Lyons, G. E. Tucker, D. G. Tarboton, R. Idaszak, and S. Wang. “Enabling collaborative numerical Modeling in Earth sciences using Knowledge Infrastructure”. Environmental Modelling and Software (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2019.03.020.
A. Wiens, W. Kleiber, K. R. Barnhart, and D. Sain. “Surface Estimation for Multiple Misaligned Point Sets”. Mathematical Geosciences 39.2 (Apr. 2019), pp. 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11004-019-09802-y.
K. R. Barnhart, E. Hutton, N. Gasparini, and G. Tucker. “Lithology: A Landlab submodule for spatially variable rock properties”. Journal of Open Source Software 3.30 (2018), pp. 979–2. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.00979.
M. Bendixen, L. L. Iversen, A. A. Bjork, B. Elberling, A.Westergaard-Nielsen, I. Overeem, K. R. Barnhart, S. A. Khan, J. E. Box, J. Abermann, K. Langley, and A. Kroon. “Delta progradation in Greenland driven by increasing glacial mass loss”. Nature 550.7674 (2017), pp. 101–104. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature23873.
C. M. Shobe, G. E. Tucker, and K. R. Barnhart. “The SPACE 1.0 model: a Landlab component for 2-D calculation of sediment transport, bedrock erosion, and landscape evolution”. Geoscientific Model Development 10.12 (2017), pp. 4577–4604. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-4577-2017.
K. R. Barnhart, C. R. Miller, I. Overeem, and J. E. Kay. “Mapping the future expansion of Arctic open water”. Nature Climate Change (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2848.
R. C. Mahon, J. B. Shaw, K. R. Barnhart, D. E. Hobley, and B. McElroy. “Quantifying the stratigraphic completeness of delta shoreline trajectories”. Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface 120.5 (2015), pp. 799–817. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JF003298.
K. R. Barnhart, R. S. Anderson, I. Overeem, C. Wobus, G. D. Clow, and F. E. Urban. “Modeling erosion of ice-rich permafrost bluffs along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast”. Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface 119.5 (2014), pp. 1155–1179. https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JF002845.
K. R. Barnhart, I. Overeem, and R. S. Anderson. “The effect of changing sea ice on the physical vulnerability of Arctic coasts”. The Cryosphere 8 (2014), pp. 1777–1799. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1777-2014.
K. R. Barnhart, K. H. Mahan, T. J. Blackburn, S. A. Bowring, and F. O. Dudas. “Deep crustal xenoliths from central Montana, USA: Implications for the timing and mechanisms of high-velocity lower crust formation”. Geosphere (2012). https://doi.org/10.1130/GES00765.1.
K. R. Barnhart, P. J. Walsh, L. S. Hollister, C. G. Daniel, and C. Andronicos. “Decompression during Late Proterozoic Al2SiO5 Triple-Point Metamorphism at Cerro Colorado, New Mexico”. The Journal of Geology (2012). https://doi.org/10.1086/665793.
T. J. Blackburn, S. A. Bowring, J. T. Perron, K. H. Mahan, F. O. Dudas, and K. R. Barnhart. “An Exhumation History of Continents over Billion-Year Time Scales”. Science 335.6064 (2012), pp. 73–76. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1213496.

**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.

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