Abbott M.B., Anderson, L., 2009, Lake-Level Fluctuations, in, Gornitz, V., ed., Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments: Springer-Verlag.
Lesleigh Anderson
Biography
Lesleigh Anderson conducts research that investigates the paleoclimate of western North America using geochemical and sedimentary proxies in lake sediments, fossil wood and peatlands. Her current focus is on documenting past patterns and variability to better evaluate ongoing and potential changes in regional water availability.
Education
- B.Sc., Chemistry, University of Utah (1985)
- M.Sc., Geology, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2000)
- Ph.D., Geosciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2005)
Science and Products
Date published: March 25, 2020
Status: Active Past Perspectives of Water in the West
In the intermountain west, seasonal precipitation extremes, combined with population growth, are creating new challenges for the management of water resources, ecosystems, and geologic hazards. This research contributes a comprehensive long-term context for a deeper understanding of past hydrologic variability, including the magnitude and frequency of drought and flood extremes and ecosystem...
Date published: July 14, 2017
Status: Completed Holocene Hydroclimate of Western North America
The objectives of this project are to reconstruct detailed histories of Holocene hydroclimate and corresponding environmental change from geological archives such as lake sediment, peat, and wood to more fully understand past, ongoing, and future change and its impacts.
Contacts: Lesleigh Anderson
Year Published: 2021
USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with university, Federal, Tribal, and independent partners, conducts fundamental research on the distribution, vulnerability, and importance of permafrost in arctic and boreal ecosystems. Scientists, land managers, and policy makers use USGS data to help make decisions for development, wildlife...
Waldrop, Mark P.; Anderson, Lesleigh; Dornblaser, Mark; Erikson, Li H.; Gibbs, Ann E.; Herman-Mercer, Nicole M.; James, Stephanie R.; Jones, Miriam C.; Koch, Joshua C.; Leewis, Mary-Cathrine; Manies, Kristen L.; Minsley, Burke J.; Pastick, Neal J.; Patil, Vijay; Urban, Frank; Walvoord, Michelle A.; Wickland, Kimberly P.; Zimmerman, ChristianAttribution: Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Volcano Science Center, Natural Hazards, Water Resources, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center, Volcano Hazards Program Office, Region 11: Alaska, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
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Waldrop, M.P., Anderson, L., Dornblaser, M., Erikson, L.H., Gibbs, A.E., Herman-Mercer, N.M., James, S.R., Jones, M.C., Koch, J.C., Leewis, M.-C., Manies, K.L., Minsley, B.J., Pastick, N.J., Patil, V., Urban, F., Walvoord, M.A., Wickland, K.P., and Zimmerman, C., 2021, USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2020-3058, 6 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/fs20203058.
Year Published: 2020
Persistence and plasticity in conifer water-use strategies
The selective use of seasonal precipitation by vegetation is critical to understanding the residence time and flow path of water in watersheds, yet there are limited datasets to test how climate alters these dynamics. Here, we use measurements of the seasonal cycle of tree ring 18O for two widespread conifer species in the Rocky Mountains of North...
Berkelhammer, Max ; Still, Chris ; Ritter, Francois ; Winnik, Matthew ; Anderson, Lesleigh; Carroll, Rosemary ; Carbone, Mariah ; Williams, Kenneth
Year Published: 2019
An assessment of plant species differences on cellulose oxygen isotopes from two Kenai Peninsula, Alaska peatlands: Implications for hydroclimatic reconstructions
Peat cores are valuable archives of past environmental change because they accumulate plant organic matter over millennia. While studies have primarily focused on physical, ecological, and some biogeochemical proxies, cores from peatlands have increasingly been used to interpret hydroclimatic change using stable isotope analyses of cellulose...
Jones, Miriam; Anderson, Lesleigh; Keller, Katherine; Nash, Bailey; Littell, Virginia; Wooller, Matthew J.; Jolley, Chelsea
Year Published: 2018
Fish Lake limnology and watershed aqueous geochemistry, Fish Lake Plateau, Utah
Fish Lake is located at 2696 m elevation on the Fish Lake Plateau with a bedrock geology of Oligocene to Pliocene age volcanics and Cretaceous to Eocene age sedimentary rocks. Lake bathymetry indicates a maximum depth of ~27 m and volume of 2.31 x 108 m3. The lake is dimictic with summer water column temperature declines of 13˚C between 7 to 15 m...
David Marchetti; Anderson, Lesleigh; Joseph J. Donovan; M. Scott Harris; Tyler Huth
Year Published: 2018
Lake levels in a discontinuous permafrost landscape: Late Holocene variations inferred from sediment oxygen isotopes, Yukon Flats, Alaska
During recent decades, lake levels in the Yukon Flats region of interior Alaska have fluctuated dramatically. However, prior to recorded observations, no data are available to indicate if similar or more extreme variations occurred during past centuries and millennia. This study explores the history of Yukon Flats lake origins and lake levels for...
Anderson, Lesleigh; Finney, Bruce P.; Shapley, Mark D.Attribution: Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Climate Research and Development Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
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Lesleigh Anderson, Bruce P. Finney & Mark D. Shapley (2018) Lake levels in
a discontinuous permafrost landscape: Late Holocene variations inferred from sediment oxygen
isotopes, Yukon Flats, Alaska, Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, 50:1, e1496565, DOI:
10.1080/15230430.2018.1496565
Year Published: 2018
A North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) of the Common Era
This study presents a synthesis of century-scale hydroclimate variations in North America for the Common Era (last 2000 years) using new age models of previously published multiple proxy-based paleoclimate data. This North American Hydroclimate Synthesis (NAHS) examines regional hydroclimate patterns and related environmental indicators,...
Rodysill, Jessica R. ; Anderson, Lesleigh; Cronin, Thomas M.; Jones, Miriam C.; Thompson, Robert S.; Wahl, David B.; Willard, Debra A.; Addison, Jason A.; Alder, Jay R.; Anderson, Katherine H.; Anderson, Lysanna; Barron, John A.; Bernhardt, Christopher E.; Hostetler, Steven W.; Kehrwald, Natalie M.; Khan, Nicole; Richey, Julie N.; Starratt, Scott W.; Strickland, Laura E.; Toomey, Michael; Treat, Claire C.; Wingard, G. LynnAttribution: Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Water Resources, Energy Resources Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Mineral Resources Program, National Laboratories Program, Science and Decisions Center, Region 2: South Atlantic-Gulf (Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian
Year Published: 2017
High sensitivity of gross primary production in the Rocky Mountains to summer rain
In the catchments of the Rocky Mountains, peak snowpack is declining in response to warmer spring temperatures. To understand how this will influence terrestrial gross primary production (GPP), we compared precipitation data across the intermountain west with satellite retrievals of solar-induced fluorescence (SIF), a proxy for GPP. Annual...
Berkelhammer, M.; Stefanescu, I.C.; Joiner, J.; Anderson, LesleighAttribution: Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Climate Research and Development Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
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Berkelhammer, M., Stefanescu, I.C., Joiner, J., and Anderson, L (2017), High Sensitivity of gross primary production in the Rocky Mountains to Summer Rain. Geophysical Research Letters 44, 3643-3652
Year Published: 2017
A synthesis of thermokarst lake water balance in high-latitude regions of North America from isotope tracers
Numerous studies utilizing remote sensing imagery and other methods have documented that thermokarst lakes are undergoing varied hydrological transitions in response to recent climate changes, from surface area expansion to drainage and evaporative desiccation. Here, we provide a synthesis of hydrological conditions for 376 lakes of mainly...
MacDonald, Lauren A.; Wolfe, Brent B.; Turner, Kevin W.; Anderson, Lesleigh; Arp, Christopher D.; Birks, Jean; Bouchard, Frédéric; Edwards, Thomas W.D.; Farquharson, Nicole; Hall, Roland I.; McDonald, Ian; Narancic, Biljana; Ouimet, Chantal; Pienitz, Reinhard; Tondu, Jana; White, HilaryAttribution: Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Climate Research and Development Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
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MacDonald, L.M., Wolfe, B.B., Turner, K.W., Anderson, L., Arp, C.D., Birks, J., Bouchard, F., Edwards, T.W.D., Farquharson, N., Hall, R.I., McDonald, I., Narancic, B., Ouimet, C., Pienitz, R., Tondu, J., White, H. (2017), A synthesis of thermokarst lake water balance in high latitude regions of North America from isotope tracers. Arctic Science 3(2), 118-149
Year Published: 2016
Water isotope systematics: Improving our palaeoclimate interpretations
The stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen, measured in a variety of archives, are widely used proxies in Quaternary Science. Understanding the processes that control δ18O change have long been a focus of research (e.g. Shackleton and Opdyke, 1973; Talbot, 1990 ; Leng, 2006). Both the dynamics of water isotope cycling and the appropriate...
Jones, M. D.; Dee, S.; Anderson, L.; Baker, A.; Bowen, G.; Noone, D.
Year Published: 2016
Lake oxygen isotopes as recorders of North American Rocky Mountain hydroclimate: Holocene patterns and variability at multi-decadal to millennial time scales
Lake sediment oxygen isotope records (calcium carbonate-δ18O) in the western North American Cordillera developed during the past decade provide substantial evidence of Pacific ocean–atmosphere forcing of hydroclimatic variability during the Holocene. Here we present an overview of 18 lake sediment δ18O records along with a new...
Anderson, Lesleigh; Berkelhammer, Max ; Barron, John A.; Steinman, Byron A.; Finney, Bruce P.; Abbott, Mark B.Attribution: Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Climate Research and Development Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
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Anderson, L., Berkelhammer, M., Barron, J.A., Steinman, B.A., Finney, B.P., Abbott, M.B., 2016. Lake oxygen isotopes as recorders of North American Rocky Mountain hydroclimate: Holocene patterns and variability at multi-decadal to millennial time scales
Year Published: 2015
Isotopes in North American Rocky Mountain snowpack 1993–2014
We present ∼1300 new isotopic measurements (δ18O and δ2H) from a network of snowpack sites in the Rocky Mountains that have been sampled since 1993. The network includes 177 locations where depth-integrated snow samples are collected each spring near peak accumulation. At 57 of these locations snowpack samples were obtained for 10...
Anderson, Lesleigh; Berkelhammer, Max ; Mast, AlisaAttribution: Colorado Water Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Climate Research and Development Program, Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program, Land Change Science Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin
View Citation
Anderson, L., Berkelhammer, M., Mast, M.A., 2015. Isotopes in North American Rocky Mountain Snowpack 1993-2014. Quaternary Science Reviews 131, 262-273.
Year Published: 2015
A multi-proxy record of hydroclimate, vegetation, fire, and post-settlement impacts for a subalpine plateau, Central Rocky Mountains U.S.A
Apparent changes in vegetation distribution, fire, and other disturbance regimes throughout western North America have prompted investigations of the relative importance of human activities and climate change as potential causal mechanisms. Assessing the effects of Euro-American settlement is difficult because climate changes occur on multi-...
Anderson, Lesleigh; Brunelle, Andrea; Thompson, Robert S.Pre-USGS Publications
Anderson, L., Abbott, M.B., Finney, B.P. and Burns, S.J., 2007, Late Holocene moisture balance variability in the southwest Yukon Territory, Canada: Quaternary Science Reviews, 26: 130-141.
Anderson, L., Abbott, M.B., Finney, B.P. and Burns, S.J., 2005, Regional atmospheric circulation change in the North Pacific during the Holocene inferred from lacustrine carbonate oxygen isotopes, Yukon Territory, Canada: Quaternary Research 64: 21-35. Erratum 65: 350-351.
Anderson, L., Abbott, M.B., Finney, B.P. and Edwards, M.E., 2005, Paleohydrology of the southwest Yukon Territory, Canada, based on multi-proxy lake sediment core analyses from a depth transect: The Holocene 15(8): 1172-1183.
Pilcher, J., Bradley, R.S. Francus, P. and Anderson, L., 2005, A Holocene tephra record from the Lofoten Islands, Arctic Norway: Boreas 34: 136-156.
Fisher, D.A., Wake, C., Kreutz, K., Yalcin, K., Steig, E., Mayewski, P., Anderson, L., Zheng, J., Rupper, S., Zdanowicz, C., Demuth, M., Waskiewicz, M., Dahl-Jensen, D., Goto-Azuma, K., Bourgeois, J.B., Koerner, R.M., Sekerka, J., Osterberg, E., Abbott, M.B., Finney, B.P., Burns, S.J., 2004, Stable Isotope records from Mount Logan, Eclipse ice cores and nearby Jellybean Lake. Water cycle of the North Pacific over 2000 years and over five vertical kilometers: sudden shifts and tropical connections: Géographie physique et Quaternaire 58: 337-352.
Anderson, L., Abbott, M.B., and Finney, B.P., 2001, Holocene Climate from Oxygen Isotope Ratios in Lake Sediments, Central Brooks Range, Alaska: Quaternary Research 55: 313-321.
Date published: May 30, 2019
Tracking long term changes in lake levels within permafrost regions of Alaska
This article is part of the Spring 2019 issue of the Earth Science Matters Newsletter.
Attribution: Climate Research and Development Program
Date published: November 30, 2016
Tracking long-term changes in Rocky Mountain snowpack
This article is part of the Fall 2016 issue of the Earth Science Matters Newsletter.
Attribution: Climate Research and Development Program
Date published: November 30, 2015
Tracing long-term changes in Rocky Mountain climate, water, and ecosystems
This article is part of the Fall 2015 issue of the Earth Science Matters Newsletter.
Attribution: Climate Research and Development Program