Martin Goldhaber
Martin (Marty) Goldhaber is a Scientist Emeritus with the Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center and the John Wesley Powell John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis. His research focuses on the role of geology, hydrology, ecology, and land use in regional soil geochemistry.
Martin (Marty) Goldhaber grew up in Los Angeles California. After spending a year as a Post Doc at Yale, he joined the USGS in 1975. He was co-chair of the USGS Science Strategy team which identified key strategic directions for the USGS to follow over the next decade.
Marty is past President of the Geochemical Society. Marty has served on the editorial boards of Economic Geology, American Journal of Science, and Geochimica (two terms) and has served on advisory boards for the Geological Society of America, the Ocean Drilling Program, NASA, and NSF. His association with the Colorado School of Mines and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as adjunct professor resulted in the mentoring of thirteen masters and doctoral students. He is also on the faculty of the Minerals, Metals, Metalloids, and Toxicity program at SUNY Stony Brook. Marty’s research interests have evolved during his career. His early work was on the biogeochemistry of sulfur in modern marine sediments. After joining the USGS, he applied these perspectives on sulfur geochemistry toward understanding the origin of sediment-hosted ore deposits. This interest in ore genesis led to a focus on large scale crustal fluid flow processes that drive not only genesis of some ore types, but also impact the modern environment by enriching shallow crustal rocks with potentially toxic constituents. His research then evolved into understanding the environmental impacts of these crustal flow processes.
Education and Certifications
PhD in Geochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles (1973)
BS in Chemistry, University of California, Los Angeles (1968)
Affiliations and Memberships*
Geological Society of America - Fellow
American Association for the Advancement of Science - Fellow
Society of Economic Geologists - Fellow
Geochemical Society
Honors and Awards
Presidential Rank Award
Department of the Interior Meritorious Service Award
Science and Products
Geochemical Signatures and Environmental Impacts of Ore and Trace Mineralization in the Southern Midcontinent
Characterizing landscape genomics and reconstructing pathways to plant ecological specialization and speciation
Backgrounds and Baselines
Arsenic in stream sediments of northern Alabama
Distribution of a suite of elements including arsenic and mercury in Alabama coal
The Modern Geological Survey; a model for research, innovation, synthjesis: A USGS perspective
Drought-induced recharge promotes long-term storage of porewater salinity beneath a prairie wetland
Using halogens (Cl, Br, I) to understand the hydrogeochemical evolution of drought-derived saline porewater beneath a prairie wetland
The interacting roles of climate, soils, and plant production on soil microbial communities at a continental scale
Grand challenges for integrated USGS science — A workshop report
Changes in pond water levels and surface extent due to climate variability alter solute sources to closed-basin Prairie-Pothole wetland ponds, 1979 to 2012
Controls on the geochemical evolution of Prairie Pothole Region lakes and wetlands over decadal time scales
Soil formation: Chapter 6
Powell Center Newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 1
Chemical and biotic characteristics of prairie lakes and large wetlands in south-central North Dakota—Effects of a changing climate
Weathering and transport of chromium and nickel from serpentinite in the Coast Range ophiolite to the Sacramento Valley, California, USA
Hydrogeochemistry of prairie pothole region wetlands: Role of long-term critical zone processes
Science and Products
Geochemical Signatures and Environmental Impacts of Ore and Trace Mineralization in the Southern Midcontinent
Characterizing landscape genomics and reconstructing pathways to plant ecological specialization and speciation
Backgrounds and Baselines
Arsenic in stream sediments of northern Alabama
Distribution of a suite of elements including arsenic and mercury in Alabama coal
The Modern Geological Survey; a model for research, innovation, synthjesis: A USGS perspective
Drought-induced recharge promotes long-term storage of porewater salinity beneath a prairie wetland
Using halogens (Cl, Br, I) to understand the hydrogeochemical evolution of drought-derived saline porewater beneath a prairie wetland
The interacting roles of climate, soils, and plant production on soil microbial communities at a continental scale
Grand challenges for integrated USGS science — A workshop report
Changes in pond water levels and surface extent due to climate variability alter solute sources to closed-basin Prairie-Pothole wetland ponds, 1979 to 2012
Controls on the geochemical evolution of Prairie Pothole Region lakes and wetlands over decadal time scales
Soil formation: Chapter 6
Powell Center Newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 1
Chemical and biotic characteristics of prairie lakes and large wetlands in south-central North Dakota—Effects of a changing climate
Weathering and transport of chromium and nickel from serpentinite in the Coast Range ophiolite to the Sacramento Valley, California, USA
Hydrogeochemistry of prairie pothole region wetlands: Role of long-term critical zone processes
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government