Thomas Cronin, Ph.D.
Thomas Cronin is a Senior Geologist at the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center.
Dr. Cronin received his BA from Colgate University in Geology in 1972 and MA and PhD in Geology from Harvard University in 1974 and 1977.
Positions: National Research Council Post-doc at the USGS at the Museum of Natural History, Washington DC 1977-1978, research scientist USGS since 1978. NSF-sponsored visiting researcher at Shizuoka University, Japan (1991), lecturer Urbino (Italy) Summer School for Paleoclimatology Faculty (2009-2016), adjunct faculty Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service (2005-present), White House Office of Science, Technology and Policy (OSTP) (1996-97).
US Geological Survey research in paleoclimatology, sea-level change, biostratigraphy, geochemistry and ecosystems; more than co-authored 200 scientific articles, more than 60 journals including Science, Nature, Nature Geoscience, Proceedings National Academy of Sciences, Geology, Geophysical Research Letters, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, and Quaternary Science Reviews. Numerous invited articles to proceedings volumes, handbooks & encyclopedias. Written two books, former co-editor of Global & Planetary Change, editorial boards for Journal of Micropaleontology, Marine Micropaleontology, Journal of Paleontology. Frequent manuscript reviews for international journals, proposals to National Science Foundation and other agencies.
In addition to work at OSTP, served on numerous USGS and interagency scientific committees and panels, contributing to USGS program development and informing decision-makers and the public. Published influential studies in the fields of micropaleontology, sea level and climate change, paleoceanography, and ecosystem history. Honors: Brady Medal (TMS London), Duke of Montefeltro Medal (USSP Urbino), Fellow, American Association for Advancement of Science, Wilmot H. Bradley lecture (Geological Society Washington), US Coast Guard Service Medal, AGU Citation for Excellence Reviewing, Bolin Climate Center Annual Lecturer (Stockholm), USGS Leadership, Meritorious Service, and Excellence Awards. Research widely reported in media including NY Times, National Geographic Society, New Scientist, Chesapeake Bay Journal, BBC, NPR, AP, and Fox News. Collaboration with major research institutions across the US, Europe and Asia, mentored numerous bachelors, masters and PhD students.
Current research focused on Land-Sea Linkages in the Arctic, Arctic paleoclimatology and sea-level change. Participated in four Arctic icebreaker research expeditions recovering sediment cores of the last million years of Arctic Ocean history. Work has influenced US Department of Homeland Security, US Coast Guard icebreaker planning, NOAA’s Arctic Program, and the International Ocean Drilling Program deep-sea coring program.
Science and Products
Paleontology of the upper Eocene to quaternary postimpact section in the USGS-NASA Langley core, Hampton, Virginia
Species-energy relationship in the deep sea: A test using the Quaternary fossil record
Middle Pliocene sea surface temperature variability
Multiproxy evidence of Holocene climate variability from estuarine sediments, eastern North America
Mid-Pliocene deep-sea bottom-water temperatures based on ostracode Mg/Ca ratios
Ecology and shell chemistry of Loxoconcha matagordensis
Head-bobbing behavior in foraging whooping cranes favors visual fixation
Ecosystem history of southern and central Biscayne Bay: Summary report on sediment core analyses - year two
Contrasting glacial/interglacial regimes in the western Arctic Ocean as exemplified by a sedimentary record from the Mendeleev Ridge
An association of benthic foraminifera and gypsum in Holocene sediments of estuarine Chesapeake Bay, USA
Population ecology and shell chemistry of a phytal ostracode species (Loxoconcha matagordensis) in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Pocomoke Sound Sedimentary and Ecosystem History
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Paleontology of the upper Eocene to quaternary postimpact section in the USGS-NASA Langley core, Hampton, Virginia
The USGS-NASA Langley corehole was drilled in 2000 in Hampton, Va. The core serves as a benchmark for the study of calcareous nannofossils, dinoflagellates, diatoms and silico flagellates, mollusks, ostracodes, planktonic foraminifera and bolboformids, and vertebrate remains in the upper Eocene, Oligocene, Miocene, and Pliocene sediments in southeastern Virginia. These sediments were deposited aftAuthorsLucy E. Edwards, John A. Barron, David Bukry, Laurel M. Bybell, Thomas M. Cronin, C. Wylie Poag, Robert E. Weems, G. Lynn WingardSpecies-energy relationship in the deep sea: A test using the Quaternary fossil record
Little is known about the processes regulating species richness in deep-sea communities. Here we take advantage of natural experiments involving climate change to test whether predictions of the species-energy hypothesis hold in the deep sea. In addition, we test for the relationship between temperature and species richness predicted by a recent model based on biochemical kinetics of metabolism. UAuthorsG. Hunt, T. M. Cronin, K. RoyMiddle Pliocene sea surface temperature variability
Estimates of sea surface temperature (SST) based upon foraminifer, diatom, and ostracod assemblages from ocean cores reveal a warm phase of the Pliocene between about 3.3 and 3.0 Ma. Pollen records and plant megafossils, although not as well dated, show evidence for a warmer climate at about the same time. Increased greenhouse forcing and altered ocean heat transport are the leading candidates forAuthorsH.J. Dowsett, M.A. Chandler, T. M. Cronin, Gary S. DwyerMultiproxy evidence of Holocene climate variability from estuarine sediments, eastern North America
We reconstructed paleoclimate patterns from oxygen and carbon isotope records from the fossil estuarine benthic foraminifera Elphidium and Mg/ Ca ratios from the ostracode Loxoconcha from sediment cores from Chesapeake Bay to examine the Holocene evolution of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)-type climate variability. Precipitation-driven river discharge and regional temperature variability are theAuthorsT. M. Cronin, R. Thunell, G. S. Dwyer, C. Saenger, M. E. Mann, C. Vann, R.R. SealMid-Pliocene deep-sea bottom-water temperatures based on ostracode Mg/Ca ratios
We studied magnesium:calcium (Mg/Ca) ratios in shells of the deep-sea ostracode genus Krithe from a short interval in the middle Pliocene between 3.29 and 2.97 Ma using deep-sea drilling sites in the North and South Atlantic in order to estimate bottom water temperatures (BWT) during a period of climatic warmth. Results from DSDP and ODP Sites 552A, 610A, 607, 658A, 659A, 661A and 704 for the periAuthorsT. M. Cronin, H.J. Dowsett, Gary S. Dwyer, P.A. Baker, M.A. ChandlerEcology and shell chemistry of Loxoconcha matagordensis
Studies of the seasonal ecology and shell chemistry of the ostracode Loxoconcha matagordensis and related species of Loxoconcha from regions off eastern North America reveal that shell size and trace elemental (Mg/Ca ratio) composition are useful in paleothermometry using fossil populations. Seasonal sampling of populations from Chesapeake Bay, augmented by samples from Florida Bay, indicate thatAuthorsT. M. Cronin, T. Kamiya, G. S. Dwyer, H. Belkin, C.D. Vann, S. Schwede, R. WagnerHead-bobbing behavior in foraging whooping cranes favors visual fixation
No abstract available.AuthorsThomas M. Cronin, Matthew R. Kinloch, Glenn H. OlsenEcosystem history of southern and central Biscayne Bay: Summary report on sediment core analyses - year two
The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) lists restoration of the timing, quantity, and quality of the natural flow of freshwater as one its primary goals. Before restoration can occur, however, the baseline conditions of the environment prior to significant human alteration must be established and the range of variation within the natural system must be determined. In addition, theAuthorsG. Lynn Wingard, Thomas M. Cronin, Charles W. Holmes, Debra A. Willard, Gary S. Dwyer, Scott E. Ishman, William Orem, Christopher P. Williams, Jessica Albietz, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Carlos A. Budet, Bryan Landacre, Terry Lerch, Marci Marot, Ruth E. OrtizContrasting glacial/interglacial regimes in the western Arctic Ocean as exemplified by a sedimentary record from the Mendeleev Ridge
Distinct cyclicity in lithology and microfaunal distribution in sediment cores from the Mendeleev Ridge in the western Arctic Ocean (water depths ca. 1. 5 km) reflects contrasting glacial/interglacial sedimentary patterns. We conclude that during major glaciations extremely thick pack ice or ice shelves covered the western Arctic Ocean and its circulation was restricted in comparison with interglaAuthorsL. Polyak, W.B. Curry, D. A. Darby, J. Bischof, T. M. CroninAn association of benthic foraminifera and gypsum in Holocene sediments of estuarine Chesapeake Bay, USA
Two cores of Holocene sediments recovered from the Cape Charles Channel of Chesapeake Bay yielded radiocarbon ages of about 6.8 to 5.8 ka for the lower intervals. Fossil foraminifera preserved in these lower sediments are dominated by species of Elphidium, which make up about 90% of the assemblage throughout, and probably signify deposition in hypersaline waters. Buccella frigida and Ammonia beccaAuthorsJ. Cann, T. CroninPopulation ecology and shell chemistry of a phytal ostracode species (Loxoconcha matagordensis) in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Population ecology and shell chemistry were studied in the phytal ostracode Loxoconcha matagordensis (Swain 1955) collected from Zostera marina seagrass beds in the Chesapeake Bay to provide seasonal constraints on shell secretion time for paleothermometry. Population density and age structure were defined by two main breeding cycles that occurred between 01 to 15 June and 02 to 16 August 2001. ThAuthorsC.D. Vann, T. M. Cronin, Gary S. DwyerPocomoke Sound Sedimentary and Ecosystem History
Summary of Results: Pocomoke Sound Sediment and Sediment Processes Transport of sediment from coastal marshes. Analyses of pollen and foraminifera from surface sediments in Pocomoke Sound suggest that neither the upstream forested wetlands nor coastal marshes bordering the sound have contributed appreciably to particulate matter in the 10- to 1000-micron size range that is currently being depositAuthorsThomas M. Cronin - News