Faculty & Staff
Learn more about the academic professionals behind the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences in the College of Science and Engineering at UNCW.
Faculty
Michael Benedetti, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Benedetti is a physical geographer with interests in geomorphology, Quaternary science and geoarchaeology. His research investigates geomorphic responses to natural and anthropogenic environmental change.
His recent projects have focused on late Quaternary sea level and climate change, landscape change in archaeological settings and the influence of floods on sediment transport in large rivers.
David Blake, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. David Blake is a petrologist and structural geologist who studies the tectonic evolution of the Laurentian-North American craton and its accreted terranes from the Neoproterozoic to the Mesozoic primarily in the eastern Piedmont of North Carolina for the NCGS STATEMAP program.
Dr. Blake's main focuses & concentrations are:
- Detailed traditional and iPad geologic mapping of deformed igneous
- Metamorphic
- Volcanogenic sedimentary rocks within and between lithotectonic terranes of Eastern Carolina.
- Establishing the lithologic and lithodemic framework of an area
- microscale to macroscale analyses of structural and metamorphic fabric elements
- The mechanical control that fabric exerts on deformation
- Progressive plastic-brittle deformation
- Overprinting relationships
- Metamorphism during fault zone development
- Plate tectonic interactions responsible for terrane accretion
Philip Bresnahan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. Bresnahan specializes in in situ sensor development and application for the study of coastal and estuarine processes. He tinkers with and invents cutting-edge technologies to study biogeochemical phenomena at finer spatial and temporal scales than ever before possible:
- Ocean acidification
- Deoxygenation
- Eutrophication
- Algae blooms
Dr. Bresnahan is interested in applied science and engineering for the sake of society. How can we learn more about our valuable coastal and open ocean resources in order to ensure their longevity and our own wellbeing?
Doug Gamble, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Doug Gamble is an applied climatologist with interests in hydrology, climate variability and coastal and island environments of the Caribbean and the southeastern United States.
His current research projects includes:
- Monitoring of rainfall and other hydrologic variables in the Bahamas
- Assessment of current and past hydrodynamics of Salt River Bay, St. Croix, US Virgin Islands
- Investigation of double exposure vulnerability of small-holding farmers in St. Elizabeth Parish, Jamaica
Peng Gao, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Coordinator - Graduate Certificate in GIS
Dr. Gao has a broad background in the disciplines of landscape ecology, biogeography, climate extremes (heavy precipitation and flooding, wildfires, and drought) and soil sciences. He is particularly interested in the addressing basic and applied questions of disciplines through applications of:
- Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
- Remote sensing
- Spatial data mining
- Statistical methods
Eman Ghoneim, Ph.D.
Professor, Coordinator - Geospatial Technologies Minor
Dr. Ghoneim is a physical geographer with primarily interest in the application of Remote Sensing, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and geomorphology in the coastal studies, surface and subsurface water resources.
Dr. Ghoneim is particularly interested in arid and semiarid environment and natural hazards such as:
- Global climate change
- Sea level rise
- Flash flood risk
Lauren Graniero, Ph.D.
Senior Lecturer
Dr. Graniero is a paleoclimatologist who uses paleoenvironmental archives to extend our knowledge of climate and environmental perturbations beyond the instrumental record.
She is interested in understanding how rapid changes in climate, land use and pollution affect past and present biogeochemical cycles. To do this, she examines geochemical variations in biogenic carbonates as archives of environmental information.
Her recent projects have examined how C and N isotope ratios in freshwater mussels can be used to reconstruct biogeochemistry in the Neuse River and its estuary in North Carolina. Current work investigates how limpet shells can be used to reconstruct seasonal paleoclimate conditions using secondary ion mass spectrometry in the subtropical eastern North Atlantic Ocean during periods of abrupt climate change.
Joanne Halls, Ph.D.
Professor, Internship Program Coordinator
Dr. Joanne Halls is the Director of the Spatial Analysis Lab that is a state-of-the-art teaching and research computing facility focused on Geographic Information Systems, Image Processing and Spatial Statistics.
Some of Dr. Halls' research interests include:
- Watershed modeling
- Coastal land use development and the impacts on non-point source pollution modeling
- Integration of temporal ecological models with GIS
- Empirical studies of geographic data models
- Quantitative assessments/simulations of spatial data error and impacts on spatial models
Peter J. Haproff, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. Peter Haproff is a field-based structural geologist who studies lithospheric deformation and magmatism related to tectonic processes throughout Earth's history. Ongoing research projects focus on:
- Tectonic evolution of the Himalayan-Tibetan orogen and Central Asian Orogenic Belt
- Nature of early Earth tectonics
- Relationships between faulting and volcanism in intracontinental rifts
- Active faulting in the western Basin and Range Province of North America
His research integrates geologic mapping and structural studies with geo/thermochronology, thermobarometry, geochemistry, and analysis of geophysical data to solve first-order tectonic problems.
Andrea Hawkes, Ph.D.
Professor, MS Geoscience - Graduate Program Coordinator
Dr. Hawkes' main research interests include the development and application of environmental modeling and quantitative palaeoenvironmental reconstruction techniques. Dr. Hawkes aims to understand the role of earthquakes, tsunamis and storms as driving mechanisms of Quaternary relative sea-level change and coastal evolution.
Dr. Hawkes' research has been undertaken in coastal and wetland ecosystems in temperate and tropical environments (Indonesia, Malaysia, French Polynesia, Belize, Bermuda, Alaska and coastal USA), which are under increasing pressure from a variety of natural and artificial processes.
She aims to produce high-precision geological reconstructions of relative sea level of sufficient resolution to better estimate vertical ground displacements associated with the earthquake deformation cycle and reconstruct past sea-level variations at various temporal and spatial scales.
She uses a multiproxy approach (e.g., surface sampling, coring, GPR, CHIRP, micropaleontology, sedimentology, stratigraphy, and AMS 14C, 210Pb, 137Cs dating)
Shannon A. Klotsko, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. Klotsko's research focuses on continental margin evolution during the late Quaternary and understanding the impacts of processes such as sea level fluctuations, tectonics and climate. Previous and current research topics include:
- Glacial lake outburst floods
- Submerged paleolandscapes
- Fluvial drainages related to the peopling of the Americas
- Recent tectonic deformation
Her research has been undertaken in the Beaufort Sea in the Arctic, California, Oregon and New England. She uses seafloor mapping tools and high resolution subbottom data along with sediment cores to study these topics.
Chad Lane, Ph.D.
Department Chair, Professor
Dr. Lane's research interests include sediment records of late-Quaternary paleoenvironmental change, stable isotope geochemistry, prehistoric human-environment interactions and rapid climate change events.
His current research topics include late-Holocene environmental (climate, vegetation, disturbance regimes, etc.) change in Central America, the circum-Caribbean and North Carolina. Dr. Lane tracks:
- Prehistoric maize cultivation using stable isotope analyses of lake sediments
- Assesses the impacts of rapid climate change on prehistoric human populations
- Assesses the impacts of global climate change on carbon cycling in boreal soils
Dr. Lane has also been lucky enough to conduct much of his research in beautiful locations such as Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Newfoundland and St. Croix.
Lynn Leonard, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Leonard's areas of expertise are physical sedimentology and marine geology. Her research focuses on sediment transport mechanisms in coastal environments ranging from tidal creeks and inlets, to large estuaries and the continental shelf.
Current research projects include:
- Sediment dispersal in tidal marshes
- Marsh restoration using dredge spoil material
- Sediment transport
- Physical dynamics of living shorelines
- Sediment transport during storms on the mid-continental shelf
- Response of barrier island systems to tropical storm systems
Dr. Leonard is also the director of the Coastal Ocean Research and Monitoring Program (CORMP) housed at the UNCW Center for Marine Science. CORMP operates an array of offshore buoys that deliver real-time observations of marine weather and oceanographic conditions along the coasts of North and South Carolina. It's funded by the Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association (SECOORA) via a grant from NOAA's Integrated Ocean Observing System Program.
Ai Ning Loh, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Dr. Loh is an isotope and organic geochemist. Her research answers questions related to the sources, cycling and transport of organic matter and nutrients in aquatic (marine, estuarine and riverine) environments. She also has current projects related to organic contaminants in aquatic environments.
Patti Mason
Senior Lecturer
Ms. Mason is interested in the taxonomy, micropaleontology, paleoecology, biostratigraphy, and paleoenvironments of late Cretaceous foraminifera, especially with regards to changes in diversity and fossil assemblages as one approaches the K-P boundary.
Current research is looking at benthic and planktonic foraminifera from Coniacian through Maastrichtian sediments from core samples drilled in the North Carolina coastal plain.
Ralph Mead, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Mead and the Environmental Organic Geochemistry Laboratory (EOGL) study natural and anthropologically derived organic compounds in the environment at the land-ocean continuum.
Scott Nooner, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Nooner uses a combination of geophysical field techniques and numerical modeling to study deformation of the Earth's surface, both on land and in the marine environment. Deformation of the Earth's crust reveals important information about properties of the crust and mantle.
Dr. Nooner conducts this research in a variety of locations and setting, such as Bangladesh, where he is using monsoonal flooding, which causes annual fluctuation in the height of the crust, to quantify crustal properties there. He is also a leader in the field of measuring deformation of the seafloor and continues to develop improved instrumentation and techniques.
His work has resulted in the first record of an entire eruption cycle of an submarine volcano (Axial Seamount on the Juan de Fuca Ridge). He is currently working in both Africa and on the Juan de Fuca Ridge studying the formation and evolution of mid-ocean ridge systems, from rift initiation on continents to fully developed mid-ocean ridges.
Jeremy R. Patterson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Dr. Jeremy Patterson is a physical hydrogeologist that pursues research aimed at managing diminishing groundwater supplies. He uses a combination of field experiments and numerical modeling to describe aquifer heterogeneity and explore how this heterogeneity impacts groundwater flow, groundwater storage, and transport phenomena.
His recent research projects have focused on the characterizing the flow properties of fractured bedrock, modeling hydrologic processes occurring within fractured bedrock, and geothermal energy development.
Rebekah Rhodes, Ph.D.
Visiting Assistant Professor
Dr. Rhodes is a paleoclimatologist who uses geochemical proxy records to reconstruct climate in the deep past.
Her research interests include sedimentology and stratigraphy, reconstructing past depositional environments, stable isotope geochemistry, clumped isotope geochemistry, and triple oxygen isotope geochemistry.
Her recent research has focused on investigating environmental change in the Green River Basin during the Eocene using stable, clumped, and triple oxygen isotope records and comparing this terrestrial record to the established marine record using dynamic time warping. Currently, Dr. Rhodes is working on generating global Köppen-Geiger climate classification zones for the Paleocene using existing paleoclimate proxy records, as well as, exploring new proxy methods for use with clumped and triple oxygen isotope analysis.
Roger Shew
Senior Lecturer
Roger's geologic background is in sedimentology, stratigraphy, sedimentary petrology, subsurface methods and science education. Areas of study are the interpretation of the origin, distribution and characterization of surface and subsurface sediments and sedimentary rocks. Dr. Shew has a particular interest in coastal environments. He is currently writing a manual on the Natural History of the Coastal Plain of North Carolina.
Zijun Yang, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Dr. Yang's research interest lies in the intersection of remote sensing, machine learning, biogeography, and environmental sustainability. He is particularly interested in better understanding ecosystem dynamics under the changing climate through an integration of multi-scale remote sensing (e.g., satellite, drone, and near-surface platforms), field data collection, and geospatial artificial intelligence (GeoAI) modeling. His ongoing work focuses on:
- GeoAI and computational remote sensing
- Near real-time agricultural monitoring
- Remote characterization of vegetation phenology
- Unammed Aircraft Systems (UAS) applications
Yalei You, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Dr. You's research interests are focused on deepening our understanding of global precipitation science from satellite observations. He has worked on 15 NOAA and NASA projects since 2014 as the Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-PI. He has collaborated with 70+ leading researchers/scientists from several U.S. federal agencies (including NASA, NOAA, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and around the world (including United States, China, Japan, France, Italy, and India). Currently, Dr. You is focusing on two on-going research topics: (1) to improve the global snowfall and rainfall measurement from a satellite constellation perspective instead of from a single sensor. This work is supported by NASA; and (2) to produce the climate data record (e.g., precipitation) from multiple satellite observations. This work is supported by NOAA.
Support Staff
Ghilaine Dallaire
Administrative Associate
Allison Kyff
Administrative Associate
Adjunct Faculty
Elizabeth Hines, Ph.D.
Liz Hines pursues an eclectic mix of interests. She is an inveterate South watcher and monitors changing Southern cultural characteristics. She also keeps an eye on modern hate crime perpetrators and victims and changing hate crimes statutes.
She teaches World Regional Geography, Cartography and Planning. Additionally, Dr. Hines directs the Geography Internship program. Her newest research is on apartheid removals in South Africa, a continuation of her interest in social justice issues.
She also collaborates with Eliza Steelwater in collecting and compiling data on American lynching under the auspices of Project HAL (Historic American Lynching). She is Board Secretary of LINC, Inc., an organization that helps people transition from prison to society and a member of Wilmington's Long Range Planning Committee.
Patricia Kelley, Ph.D.
Evolution and paleoecology of Coastal Plain mollusks are the focus of Patricia Kelley's research. Ongoing studies include conservation paleobiology; tempo and mode of evolution; role of biological factors such as predation in evolution; predator-prey coevolution and escalation; mass extinction and recovery of mollusk faunas.
Todd A. LaMaskin, Ph.D.
Dr. LaMaskin uses information contained in layered rock successions to better understand how and why major earth systems change over time. Dr. LaMaskin's research investigates processes that are controlled by climatic forces and by the tectonic evolution of ancient mountain belts and active continental margins.
Michael Smith, Ph.D.
Michael Smith's academic research ranges from the study of mid-Proterozoic crustal rocks in west Greenland to the 2.2 Ma old volcanic rocks of the upper Yellowstone Valley to the petrography and provenance of historic and prehistoric ceramic sherds.
Other research interests include:
- The technological and geological history of the gold mining rush in the southeastern United States from 1799 to 1864 with Dr. M. Elizabeth Hines
- The development of the North Carolina Geological surveys.
- Tracing of the William Alonzo Allen family history (author of the "Sheep Eaters" and "Adventures with Indians and Game, or Twenty Years in the Rocky Mountains")
- Working with the Rothschild Archives
- The Ceramic Petrology working group at the British Museum on the sources and the elusive movement of quicksilver (mercury) to the gold mining operations in the American South
Faculty Emeriti
- William F. Ainsley, Jr.
- William J. Cleary
- James A. Dockal
- W. Burleigh Harris
- Patricia Kelley
- Todd A. LaMaskin
- Duncan P. Randall
- Paul A. Thayer