Wayana Dolan
Wayana Dolan is a Research Physical Scientist with the USGS, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Dolan uses satellite imagery, modeling, and fieldwork to study inland waterbodies. In particular, she is interested in ways in which connections between lakes, wetlands, and rivers impact hydrological and biogeochemical processes.
Education and Certifications
2023: PhD in Geological Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
2019: MSc in Geological Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
2016: BA in Geology from Occidental College
Science and Products
Relating surface water dynamics in wetlands and lakes to spatial variability in hydrologic signatures Relating surface water dynamics in wetlands and lakes to spatial variability in hydrologic signatures
The retention of surface water in wetlands and lakes can modify the timing, duration, and magnitude of river discharge. However, efforts to characterize the influence of surface water on discharge regimes have been generally limited to small, wetland-dense watersheds. We developed random forest models to explain spatial variability in six hydrologic signatures, reflecting flashiness...
Authors
Melanie Vanderhoof, Peter Nieuwlandt, Heather Golden, Charles R. Lane, Jay Christensen, William Keenan, Wayana Dolan
Effects of total suspended solids on photomineralization of dissolved organic matter in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada Effects of total suspended solids on photomineralization of dissolved organic matter in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada
Northern deltas receive chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) from their watersheds, which can be oxidized to carbon dioxide upon absorption of sunlight (i.e., photomineralized). These deltas also receive total suspended solids (TSS), which may shade sunlight absorption by CDOM, thus limiting photomineralization. To quantify this interaction for the first time, we measured...
Authors
Wayana Dolan, Tamlin Pavelsky, Julianne Davis, Nathan LaFramboise, Catherine Polik, Rose Cory
One-hundred fundamental, open questions to integrate methodological approaches in lake ice research One-hundred fundamental, open questions to integrate methodological approaches in lake ice research
The rate of technological innovation within aquatic sciences outpaces the collective ability of individual scientists within the field to make appropriate use of those technologies. The process of in situ lake sampling remains the primary choice to comprehensively understand an aquatic ecosystem at local scales; however, the impact of climate change on lakes necessitates the rapid...
Authors
Joshua Culpepper, Sapna Sharma, Grant Gunn, Madeline Magee, Michael Meyer, Eric Anderson, Christoper Arp, Sarah Cooley, Wayana Dolan, Hilary Dugan, Claude Duguay, Benjamin Jones, Georgiy Kirillin, Robert Ladwig, Matti Lepparanta, Di Long, John Magnuson, Tamlin Pavelsky, Sebastiano Piccolroaz, Dale M. Robertson, Bethel Steele, Manu Tom, Gesa Weyhenmeyer, R. Iesytn Woolway, Marguerite A. Xenopoulos, Xiao Yang
Quantification of wetland vegetation communities features with airborne AVIRIS-NG, UAVSAR, and UAV LiDAR data in Peace-Athabasca Delta Quantification of wetland vegetation communities features with airborne AVIRIS-NG, UAVSAR, and UAV LiDAR data in Peace-Athabasca Delta
Arctic-boreal wetlands, important ecosystems for biodiversity and ecological services, are experiencing hydrological changes including permafrost thaw, earlier snowmelt, and increased wildfire susceptibility. These changes are affecting wetland productivity, species diversity, and biogeochemical cycles. However, given the diverse forms and structures of wetland vegetation communities...
Authors
Chao Wang, Tamlin Pavelsky, Ethan Kyzivat, Fenix Garcia-Tigreros, Erika Podest, Fangfang Yao, Xiao Yang, Shuai Zhang, Conghe Song, Theodore Langhorst, Wayana Dolan, Martin Kurek, Merritt E. Harlan, Laurence C. Smith, David Butman, Robert G.M. Spencer, Colin Gleason, Kimberly Wickland, Robert Striegl, Daniel Peters
The importance of lake emergent aquatic vegetation for estimating Arctic-boreal methane emissions The importance of lake emergent aquatic vegetation for estimating Arctic-boreal methane emissions
Areas of lakes that support emergent aquatic vegetation emit disproportionately more methane than open water but are under-represented in upscaled estimates of lake greenhouse gas emissions. These shallow areas are typically less than ∼1.5 m deep and can be detected with synthetic aperture radar (SAR). To assess the importance of lake emergent vegetation (LEV) zones to landscape-scale...
Authors
Ethan Kyzivat, Laurence C. Smith, Fenix Garcia-Tigreros, Chang Huang, Chao Wang, Theodore Langhorst, Jessica Fayne, Merritt E. Harlan, Yuta Ishitsuka, Dongmei Feng, Wayana Dolan, Lincoln Pitcher, Kimberly Wickland, Mark Dornblaser, Robert Striegl, Tamlin Pavelsky, David Butman, Colin Gleason
The ecology of river ice The ecology of river ice
Many of the world's rivers are ice-covered during winter months but increasing evidence indicates that the extent of river ice will shift substantially as winters warm. However, our knowledge of rivers during winter lags far behind that of the growing season, limiting our understanding of how ice loss will affect rivers. Physical, chemical, and biological processes change from headwaters...
Authors
Audrey Thellman, Kathi Jankowski, Brian Hayden, Xiao Yang, Wayana Dolan, Adrianne Smits, Antoin O’Sullivan
Non-USGS Publications**
Dolan, W., Pavelsky, T. M., & Piliouras, A. (2024). Remote sensing of multitemporal functional lake-to-channel connectivity and implications for water movement through the Mackenzie River Delta, Canada. Water Resources Research, 60, e2023WR036614. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR036614
Yang, X., Pavelsky, T., Ross, M.V.R., Januchowski-Hartley, S., Dolan, W., Altenau, E.H., Belanger, M., Byron, D., Durand, M., Van Dusen, I., Galit, H., Jorissen, M., Langhorst, T., Lawton, E., Lynch, R., McQuillan, K.A., Pawar, S., & Whittemore, A. (2022). Mapping Flow-Obstructing Structures on Global Rivers. Water Resources Research, 58(1), e2021WR030386. doi:10.1029/2021WR030386
Dolan, W., Pavelsky, T., & Yang, X. (2021). Functional Lake-to-Channel Connectivity Impacts Lake Ice in the Colville Delta, Alaska. JGR Earth Surface, 126, e2021JF006362. doi:10.1029/2021JF006362
Harlan, M., Gleason, C.J., Altenau, E.H., Butman, D., Carter, T., Chu, V.W., Cooley, S.W., Dolan, W., Durand, M..T., Eidam, E., Fayne, J.V., Feng, D., Ishitsuka, Y., Kuhn, K., Kyzivat, E.D., Langhorst, T., Minear, T., Pavelsky, T.M., Peters, D.L., Pietroniro, A., Pitcher, L.H., & Smith, L.C. (2021). Discharge Estimation from Dense Arrays of Pressure Transducers. Water Resources Research, 57(3), e2020WR028714. doi:10.1029/2020WR028714
Whittemore, A., Ross, M.R.V., Dolan, W., Langhorst, T., Yang, X, Pawar, S., Jorissen, M., Lawton, E., Januchowski-Hartley, S., & Pavelsky, T. (2020). A Participatory Science Approach to Expanding Instream Infrastructure Inventories. Earth’s Future, 8, e2020EF001558. doi:10.1029/2020EF001558
Pitcher, L.H., Smith, L.C., Cooley, S.W., Zaino, A., Carlson, R., Pettit, J., Gleason, C.J., Minear, J.T., Fayne, J.V., Willis, M.J., Hansen, J.S., Easterday, K.J., Harlan, M.E., Langhorst, T., Topp, S.N., Dolan, W., Kyzivat, E.D., Pietroniro, A., Marsh, P., Yang, D., Carter, T., Onclin, C., Hosseini, N., Wilco, E., Moreira, D., Berge-nguyen, M., Cretaux, J., & Pavelsky, T. (2020). Advancing field-based GNSS surveying for validation of remotely sensed water surface elevation products. Frontiers in Earth Science, 8, 1-20. doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00278
Dolan, W., Payne, V.H., Kulawik, S.S., & Bowman, K.W. (2016), Satellite observations of ethylene (C2H4) from the Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer: A scoping study. Atmospheric Environment, 141, 388-393. doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2016.07.009
**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
Relating surface water dynamics in wetlands and lakes to spatial variability in hydrologic signatures Relating surface water dynamics in wetlands and lakes to spatial variability in hydrologic signatures
The retention of surface water in wetlands and lakes can modify the timing, duration, and magnitude of river discharge. However, efforts to characterize the influence of surface water on discharge regimes have been generally limited to small, wetland-dense watersheds. We developed random forest models to explain spatial variability in six hydrologic signatures, reflecting flashiness...
Authors
Melanie Vanderhoof, Peter Nieuwlandt, Heather Golden, Charles R. Lane, Jay Christensen, William Keenan, Wayana Dolan
Effects of total suspended solids on photomineralization of dissolved organic matter in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada Effects of total suspended solids on photomineralization of dissolved organic matter in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada
Northern deltas receive chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) from their watersheds, which can be oxidized to carbon dioxide upon absorption of sunlight (i.e., photomineralized). These deltas also receive total suspended solids (TSS), which may shade sunlight absorption by CDOM, thus limiting photomineralization. To quantify this interaction for the first time, we measured...
Authors
Wayana Dolan, Tamlin Pavelsky, Julianne Davis, Nathan LaFramboise, Catherine Polik, Rose Cory
One-hundred fundamental, open questions to integrate methodological approaches in lake ice research One-hundred fundamental, open questions to integrate methodological approaches in lake ice research
The rate of technological innovation within aquatic sciences outpaces the collective ability of individual scientists within the field to make appropriate use of those technologies. The process of in situ lake sampling remains the primary choice to comprehensively understand an aquatic ecosystem at local scales; however, the impact of climate change on lakes necessitates the rapid...
Authors
Joshua Culpepper, Sapna Sharma, Grant Gunn, Madeline Magee, Michael Meyer, Eric Anderson, Christoper Arp, Sarah Cooley, Wayana Dolan, Hilary Dugan, Claude Duguay, Benjamin Jones, Georgiy Kirillin, Robert Ladwig, Matti Lepparanta, Di Long, John Magnuson, Tamlin Pavelsky, Sebastiano Piccolroaz, Dale M. Robertson, Bethel Steele, Manu Tom, Gesa Weyhenmeyer, R. Iesytn Woolway, Marguerite A. Xenopoulos, Xiao Yang
Quantification of wetland vegetation communities features with airborne AVIRIS-NG, UAVSAR, and UAV LiDAR data in Peace-Athabasca Delta Quantification of wetland vegetation communities features with airborne AVIRIS-NG, UAVSAR, and UAV LiDAR data in Peace-Athabasca Delta
Arctic-boreal wetlands, important ecosystems for biodiversity and ecological services, are experiencing hydrological changes including permafrost thaw, earlier snowmelt, and increased wildfire susceptibility. These changes are affecting wetland productivity, species diversity, and biogeochemical cycles. However, given the diverse forms and structures of wetland vegetation communities...
Authors
Chao Wang, Tamlin Pavelsky, Ethan Kyzivat, Fenix Garcia-Tigreros, Erika Podest, Fangfang Yao, Xiao Yang, Shuai Zhang, Conghe Song, Theodore Langhorst, Wayana Dolan, Martin Kurek, Merritt E. Harlan, Laurence C. Smith, David Butman, Robert G.M. Spencer, Colin Gleason, Kimberly Wickland, Robert Striegl, Daniel Peters
The importance of lake emergent aquatic vegetation for estimating Arctic-boreal methane emissions The importance of lake emergent aquatic vegetation for estimating Arctic-boreal methane emissions
Areas of lakes that support emergent aquatic vegetation emit disproportionately more methane than open water but are under-represented in upscaled estimates of lake greenhouse gas emissions. These shallow areas are typically less than ∼1.5 m deep and can be detected with synthetic aperture radar (SAR). To assess the importance of lake emergent vegetation (LEV) zones to landscape-scale...
Authors
Ethan Kyzivat, Laurence C. Smith, Fenix Garcia-Tigreros, Chang Huang, Chao Wang, Theodore Langhorst, Jessica Fayne, Merritt E. Harlan, Yuta Ishitsuka, Dongmei Feng, Wayana Dolan, Lincoln Pitcher, Kimberly Wickland, Mark Dornblaser, Robert Striegl, Tamlin Pavelsky, David Butman, Colin Gleason
The ecology of river ice The ecology of river ice
Many of the world's rivers are ice-covered during winter months but increasing evidence indicates that the extent of river ice will shift substantially as winters warm. However, our knowledge of rivers during winter lags far behind that of the growing season, limiting our understanding of how ice loss will affect rivers. Physical, chemical, and biological processes change from headwaters...
Authors
Audrey Thellman, Kathi Jankowski, Brian Hayden, Xiao Yang, Wayana Dolan, Adrianne Smits, Antoin O’Sullivan
Non-USGS Publications**
Dolan, W., Pavelsky, T. M., & Piliouras, A. (2024). Remote sensing of multitemporal functional lake-to-channel connectivity and implications for water movement through the Mackenzie River Delta, Canada. Water Resources Research, 60, e2023WR036614. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR036614
Yang, X., Pavelsky, T., Ross, M.V.R., Januchowski-Hartley, S., Dolan, W., Altenau, E.H., Belanger, M., Byron, D., Durand, M., Van Dusen, I., Galit, H., Jorissen, M., Langhorst, T., Lawton, E., Lynch, R., McQuillan, K.A., Pawar, S., & Whittemore, A. (2022). Mapping Flow-Obstructing Structures on Global Rivers. Water Resources Research, 58(1), e2021WR030386. doi:10.1029/2021WR030386
Dolan, W., Pavelsky, T., & Yang, X. (2021). Functional Lake-to-Channel Connectivity Impacts Lake Ice in the Colville Delta, Alaska. JGR Earth Surface, 126, e2021JF006362. doi:10.1029/2021JF006362
Harlan, M., Gleason, C.J., Altenau, E.H., Butman, D., Carter, T., Chu, V.W., Cooley, S.W., Dolan, W., Durand, M..T., Eidam, E., Fayne, J.V., Feng, D., Ishitsuka, Y., Kuhn, K., Kyzivat, E.D., Langhorst, T., Minear, T., Pavelsky, T.M., Peters, D.L., Pietroniro, A., Pitcher, L.H., & Smith, L.C. (2021). Discharge Estimation from Dense Arrays of Pressure Transducers. Water Resources Research, 57(3), e2020WR028714. doi:10.1029/2020WR028714
Whittemore, A., Ross, M.R.V., Dolan, W., Langhorst, T., Yang, X, Pawar, S., Jorissen, M., Lawton, E., Januchowski-Hartley, S., & Pavelsky, T. (2020). A Participatory Science Approach to Expanding Instream Infrastructure Inventories. Earth’s Future, 8, e2020EF001558. doi:10.1029/2020EF001558
Pitcher, L.H., Smith, L.C., Cooley, S.W., Zaino, A., Carlson, R., Pettit, J., Gleason, C.J., Minear, J.T., Fayne, J.V., Willis, M.J., Hansen, J.S., Easterday, K.J., Harlan, M.E., Langhorst, T., Topp, S.N., Dolan, W., Kyzivat, E.D., Pietroniro, A., Marsh, P., Yang, D., Carter, T., Onclin, C., Hosseini, N., Wilco, E., Moreira, D., Berge-nguyen, M., Cretaux, J., & Pavelsky, T. (2020). Advancing field-based GNSS surveying for validation of remotely sensed water surface elevation products. Frontiers in Earth Science, 8, 1-20. doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00278
Dolan, W., Payne, V.H., Kulawik, S.S., & Bowman, K.W. (2016), Satellite observations of ethylene (C2H4) from the Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer: A scoping study. Atmospheric Environment, 141, 388-393. doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2016.07.009
**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.