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
Flow of variably fluidized granular masses across three-dimensional terrain I. Coulomb mixture theory
Two-phase debris-flow across 3-D terrain: model predictions and experimental tests
Acute sensitivity of landslide rates to initial soil porosity
Landslide triggering by rain infiltration
Debris-flow deposition: Effects of pore-fluid pressure and friction concentrated at flow margins
Experimental testing of flexible barriers for containment of debris flows
Objective delineation of lahar-inundation hazard zones
Experimental analysis of debris-flow deposition--process and effects of pore-fluid pressure
Response of flexible wire rope barriers to debris-flow loading
Discussion and closure: Slope instability from ground-water seepage
Hydraulic modeling of unsteady debris-flow surges with solid-fluid interactions
Debris-flow mobilization from landslides
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
Flow of variably fluidized granular masses across three-dimensional terrain I. Coulomb mixture theory
Two-phase debris-flow across 3-D terrain: model predictions and experimental tests
Acute sensitivity of landslide rates to initial soil porosity
Landslide triggering by rain infiltration
Debris-flow deposition: Effects of pore-fluid pressure and friction concentrated at flow margins
Experimental testing of flexible barriers for containment of debris flows
Objective delineation of lahar-inundation hazard zones
Experimental analysis of debris-flow deposition--process and effects of pore-fluid pressure
Response of flexible wire rope barriers to debris-flow loading
Discussion and closure: Slope instability from ground-water seepage
Hydraulic modeling of unsteady debris-flow surges with solid-fluid interactions
Debris-flow mobilization from landslides
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.