I am a Geologist interested in applying geochronology and thermochronology to sedimentary rocks in order to understand the evolution of Earth’s surface and investigate interactions between tectonics, climate, and surface processes.
I joined the USGS as a Geologist in 2022 to work on the National Geochronology Database. Prior to joining the USGS I was a postdoctoral fellow at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Department. There I helped build a new low-temperature thermochronology lab and worked to revitalize a 20 year old, custom built He extraction line for (U-Th)/He thermochronology. I received my M.Sc. (2016) and Ph.D. (2020) from the University of Texas at Austin, Jackson School of Geosciences where I investigated ancient and modern sediment routing systems with detrital geochronology and thermochronology. I was born and raised in Juneau Alaska and received my B.Sc. from the University of Alaska Anchorage (2013).
Professional Experience
Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey (2022-present)
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Georgia Institute of Technology (2021-2022)
Instructor, Gallatin Community College – Montana State University (2019-2021)
Graduate Research Assistant, University of Texas at Austin (2019-2020)
Equinor (Statoil) Graduate Research Fellow (2014 – 2019)
Field Technician, Alaska Dept of Fish and Game (2014)
Junior Geologist, Alaska Earth Sciences (2013)
Teaching Assistant, University of Alaska Anchorage (2012-2013)
Geotechnical Core Logger, Kiska Metals (2011)
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Geological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin (2020)
M.Sc., Geological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin (2016)
B.S, Geological Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage (2013)
Science and Products
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.
USGS Geochron: A database of USGS geochronological and thermochronological data
Geologic Framework of the Intermountain West
USGS Geochron: A Database of Geochronological and Thermochronological Dates and Data (ver. 2.0, September 2023)
Science and Products
- Publications
Non-USGS Publications**
Thomson, K.D., Stockli, D.F., Fildani., A., 2022, Anthropogenic impact on sediment transfer in the upper Missouri River catchment detected by detrital zircon analysis. Geological Society of America Bulletin, doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/B36217.1Thomson, K.D., Stockli, D.F., Odlum, M.L., Tolentino P., Puigdefàbregas, C., Clark, J.D., and Fildani, A., 2019, Sediment provenance and routing evolution the Late Cretaceous-Eocene Ager Basin, south-central Pyrenees, Spain: Basin Research, doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/bre.12376Thomson, K.D., Stockli, D.F., Clark, J., Puigdefàbregas, C., and Fildani, A., 2017, Detrital zircon (U-Th)/(He-Pb) double dating constraints on provenance and foreland basin evolution of the Ainsa Basin, south-central Pyrenees, Spain: Tectonics, doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/2017TC004504Atwater, A.L., Thomson, K.D., Kirk E.C., Emery-Wetherell, M., Wetherell, L., Stockli., D.F., 2020, Geochronology of the Middle Eocene Purple Bench Locality (Devil’s Graveyard Formation), Trans-Pecos Texas; Paleontologica Electronica, doi: https://doi.org/10.26879/993Sickmann, Z., Chheda, T., Capaldi, T., Thomson K., Paull, C., Graham S., 2019, Using Provenance Analysis in an Anthropocene natural laboratory: Detrital signal propagation and sediment budgets; Quaternary Science Review, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105890Odlum, M.L., Stockli, D.F., Capaldi, T. N., Thomson, K.D., Fildani, A., Clark, J.D., and Puigdefàbregas, C., 2019, Tectonic and sediment provenance evolution of the South Eastern Pyrenean foreland basins during rift margin inversion and orogenic uplitft: Tectonophysics, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2019.05.008**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
USGS Geochron: A database of USGS geochronological and thermochronological data
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed an updated geochronology database (USGS Geochron) to include geochronology summary and analytical data created or funded by the USGS.Geologic Framework of the Intermountain West
The Geologic Framework of the Intermountain West project was launched with the goal of producing a new digital geologic map database and 3D geologic model of a transect from the Rio Grande rift to the Basin and Range, based on a synthesis of existing geologic maps with new targeted new mapping, subsurface data, and other data sets. This database will integrate disparate map data, resolve... - Data
USGS Geochron: A Database of Geochronological and Thermochronological Dates and Data (ver. 2.0, September 2023)
USGS Geochron is a database of geochronological and thermochronological dates and data. The data set contains published ages, dates, analytical information, sample metadata including location, and source citations. The following analytical techniques are represented in the data set: 40Ar/39Ar, K-Ar, U-Th-Pb, Sm-Nd, Rb-Sr, Lu-Hf, fission track, and luminescence. This data set incorporates data prev