Richard M. Iverson
My USGS career has focused mostly on evaluating and modeling the dynamics and hazards of landslides and debris flows, with a secondary focus on the dynamics of volcanic extrusions. Part of my work involved design, development, and utilization of the USGS debris-flow flume, a unique, large-scale experimental facility at the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest near Blue River, Oregon.
Career Highlights
A written account of some career highlights was published in 2020 in Perspectives of Earth and Space Scientists. An oral history interview recounting some of my career highlights is archived at Oregon State University.
Professional Experience
Senior Research Hydrologist, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory
Adjunct Professor, University of Washington and Portland State University
Education and Certifications
Stanford University, Ph.D., 1984, Applied Earth Sciences
Stanford University, M.S., 1981, Hydrology
Stanford University, M.S., 1980, Applied Earth Sciences
Iowa State University, B.S., 1977, Geology major, Mathematics and Physics minors
Honors and Awards
Fellow, American Geophysical Union (AGU) and Geological Society of America (GSA)
E.B. Burwell Award, GSA, 1991
Kirk Bryan Award, GSA, 2001
Richard H. Jahns Distinguished Lecturer, GSA, 2005
Langbein Lecturer, AGU, 2006
U.S. Department of the Interior Distinguished Service Award, 2019
Science and Products
My research career, including information about the debris flow experimental flume facility, is docuymented in this memoir.
Landslide disparities, flume discoveries, and Oso despair
When models meet managers: Examples from geomorphology
How should mathematical models of geomorphic processes be judged?
Gravity-driven mass flows
The debris-flow rheology myth
Surge dynamics coupled to pore-pressure evolution in debris flows
Mechanics of debris flows and debris-laden flash floods
Volcano hazards in the Three Sisters region, Oregon
Distributed shear of subglacial till due to Coulomb slip
Flow of variably fluidized granular masses across three-dimensional terrain 2. Numerical predictions and experimental tests
New views of granular mass flows
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.
Science and Products
My research career, including information about the debris flow experimental flume facility, is docuymented in this memoir.
Landslide disparities, flume discoveries, and Oso despair
When models meet managers: Examples from geomorphology
How should mathematical models of geomorphic processes be judged?
Gravity-driven mass flows
The debris-flow rheology myth
Surge dynamics coupled to pore-pressure evolution in debris flows
Mechanics of debris flows and debris-laden flash floods
Volcano hazards in the Three Sisters region, Oregon
Distributed shear of subglacial till due to Coulomb slip
Flow of variably fluidized granular masses across three-dimensional terrain 2. Numerical predictions and experimental tests
New views of granular mass flows
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.