Jessica Tierney

Last updated
Jessica Tierney
Born1982
San Francisco, CA
Alma mater Brown University, B.A., M.Sc., & Ph.D.
AwardsNSF Alan T. Waterman Award

Packard Foundation Fellow

AGU Fellow
Scientific career
Fields Paleoclimatology, Paleoceanography
Institutions University of Arizona, Associate Professor, 2015 - Present
Thesis An Organic Geochemical Perspective on Tropical East African Paleoclimate  (2010)
Doctoral advisor James M. Russell
Other academic advisors Peter B. de Menocal
Notable students Tripti Bhattacharya
Website www.geo.arizona.edu/~jesst/

Jessica E. Tierney (born 1982) is an American paleoclimatologist who has worked with geochemical proxies such as marine sediments, [1] mud, [2] [3] and TEX86, [4] to study past climate in East Africa. [5] Her papers have been cited more than 2,500 times; her most cited work is Northern Hemisphere Controls on Tropical Southeast African Climate During the Past 60,000 Years. [6] Tierney is currently an associate professor of geosciences and the Thomas R. Brown Distinguished Chair in Integrative Science at the University of Arizona and faculty affiliate in the University of Arizona School of Geography, Development and Environment [7] [3] [8] [9] Tierney is the first climatologist to win NSF's Alan T Waterman Award (2022) since its inception in 1975. [10]

Contents

Early life and education

Tierney was born in San Francisco, California, and grew up in Marin County. Tierney completed her bachelor's degree in geology in 2005 at Brown University, where she researched trace elements in Peru Margin sediments for her thesis. She completed her Masters and PhD in geology at Brown University with a focus in paleoclimatology and organic geochemistry under the advisement of James M. Russell. [11] At Brown, she also worked closely with Yongsong Huang. Sediment cores from Lake Tanganyika allowed Tierney to examine changes in precipitation and temperature during the past glacial cycle in East Africa. She completed her postdoctoral work at Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory with paleo-oceanographer Peter deMenocal. [11] Tierney worked as an assistant scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution [5] before arriving at the University of Arizona [7] where she is an associate professor.

Research

Tierney is notable in paleoclimatology for her climate research using organic biomarkers. [11] Her career studying past climate change was driven by her passion for both history and science. [11] [5] Tierney, along with Peter deMenocal and Paul Zander, studied the past climate of the Horn of Africa. They took cores of marine sediment, testing for alkenones, and concluded that about 70,000 years ago this region experienced a change from a wet climate to a dry, cold climate. Tierney and the co-authors determine this climate shift, which coincides with climate change and human activity, [1] to be the force behind human migration. [12] [7] [13] In addition, Tierney uses mud and leaf wax to learn about precipitation and the evolution of monsoons. [2] [3] [14] Tierney also uses TEX86, a biomarker that tracks temperature, to study past climate in the tropics [4] on decadal and interannual scales; [6] for example, examining the relationship Indo-Pacific variability and East African rainfall. [15]

Awards

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

Holocene Current geological epoch, covering the last 11,700 years

The Holocene is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years before present, after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene together form the Quaternary period. The Holocene has been identified with the current warm period, known as MIS 1. It is considered by some to be an interglacial period within the Pleistocene Epoch, called the Flandrian interglacial.

The Younger Dryas was a return to glacial conditions after the Late Glacial Interstadial, which temporarily reversed the gradual climatic warming after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) started receding around 20,000 BP. It is named after an indicator genus, the alpine-tundra wildflower Dryas octopetala, as its leaves are occasionally abundant in late glacial, often minerogenic-rich sediments, such as the lake sediments of Scandinavia.

Monsoon Seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation

A monsoon is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscillation of the Intertropical Convergence Zone between its limits to the north and south of the equator. Usually, the term monsoon is used to refer to the rainy phase of a seasonally changing pattern, although technically there is also a dry phase. The term is also sometimes used to describe locally heavy but short-term rains.

James Michael Russell is an American paleoclimatologist and climatologist. He is the Royce Family Professor of Teaching Excellence and a Professor of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. Russell researches the climate, paleoclimate, and limnology.

4.2-kiloyear event Severe climatic event starting around 2200 BC

The 4.2-kiloyear BP aridification event was one of the most severe climatic events of the Holocene epoch. It defines the beginning of the current Meghalayan age in the Holocene epoch.

8.2-kiloyear event Rapid global cooling around 8,200 years ago

In climatology, the so-called "8.2-kiloyear event" was a sudden decrease in global temperatures that occurred approximately 8,200 years before the present (BP), that is, c. 6,200 BC. It defines the start of the Northgrippian age in the Holocene epoch. Milder than the Younger Dryas cold period before it but more severe than the Little Ice Age after it, the 8.2-kiloyear cooling was a significant exception to general trends of the Holocene climatic optimum. During the event, atmospheric methane concentration decreased by 80 ppb, an emission reduction of 15%, by cooling and drying at a hemispheric scale.

Bond event

Bond events are North Atlantic ice rafting events that are tentatively linked to climate fluctuations in the Holocene. Eight such events have been identified. Bond events were previously believed to exhibit a roughly c. 1,500-year cycle, but the primary period of variability is now put at c. 1,000 years.

Megadrought Prolonged drought lasting two decades or longer

A megadrought is a prolonged drought lasting two decades or longer. Past megadroughts have been associated with persistent multiyear La Niña conditions.

North African climate cycles have a unique history that can be traced back millions of years. The cyclic climate pattern of the Sahara is characterized by significant shifts in the strength of the North African Monsoon. When the North African Monsoon is at its strongest, annual precipitation and consequently vegetation in the Sahara region increase, resulting in conditions commonly referred to as the "green Sahara". For a relatively weak North African Monsoon, the opposite is true, with decreased annual precipitation and less vegetation resulting in a phase of the Sahara climate cycle known as the "desert Sahara".

Ouki was an ancient lake in the Bolivian Altiplano. Its existence was postulated in 2006 by a group of scientists which had subdivided the Lake Minchin lake cycle in several subcycles. The Lake Minchin cycle had been previously identified in 1904 as a now disappeared lake in the central Altiplano. Sediments attributed to Lake Minchin may be part of Ouki instead. The dating is uncertain, with radiocarbon and uranium-thorium dating yielding different dates spanning the time between 28,200 and 125,990 ± 9,580 years ago.

African humid period Holocene climate period during which northern Africa was wetter than today

The African humid period is a climate period in Africa during the late Pleistocene and Holocene geologic epochs, when northern Africa was wetter than today. The covering of much of the Sahara desert by grasses, trees and lakes was caused by changes in Earth's orbit around the Sun; changes in vegetation and dust in the Sahara which strengthened the African monsoon; and increased greenhouse gases.

Medieval Warm Period Time of warm climate in the North Atlantic region lasting from c. 950 to c. 1250

The Medieval Warm Period (MWP), also known as the Medieval Climate Optimum or the Medieval Climatic Anomaly, was a time of warm climate in the North Atlantic region that lasted from c. 950 to c. 1250. Climate proxy records show peak warmth occurred at different times for different regions, which indicate that the MWP was not a globally uniform event.

Paleotempestology Study of past tropical cyclone activity

Paleotempestology is the study of past tropical cyclone activity by means of geological proxies as well as historical documentary records. The term was coined by American meteorologist Kerry Emanuel.

Julie Brigham-Grette American glacial geologist

Julie Brigham-Grette is a glacial geologist and a professor in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where she co-directs the Joseph Hartshorn Quaternary Laboratory. Her research expertise is in glacial geology and paleoclimatology; she has made important contributions to Arctic marine and terrestrial paleoclimate records of late Cenozoic to recent, the evolution of the Arctic climate, especially in the Beringia/Bering Strait region, and was a leader of the international Lake El’gygytgyn Drilling Project in northeastern Russia.

Bronwen Konecky is a paleoclimatologist and climatologist whose particular area of focus lies in the past and present effect of climate change in the tropics. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

Quelccaya Ice Cap Glacier in Peru

The Quelccaya Ice Cap is the second largest glaciated area in the tropics, after Coropuna. Located in the Cordillera Oriental section of the Andes mountains in Peru, the cap covers an area of 42.8 square kilometres (16.5 sq mi) with ice up to 200 metres (660 ft) thick. It is surrounded by tall ice cliffs and a number of outlet glaciers, the largest of which is known as Qori Kalis Glacier; lakes, moraines, peat bogs and wetlands are also present. There is a rich flora and fauna, including birds that nest on the ice cap. Quelccaya is an important source of water, eventually melting and flowing into the Inambari and Vilcanota Rivers.

Lake Estancia Prehistoric lake in New Mexico, United States

Lake Estancia was a lake formed in the Estancia Valley, central New Mexico, which left various coastal landforms in the valley. The lake was mostly fed by creek and groundwater from the Manzano Mountains, and fluctuated between freshwater stages and saltier stages. The lake had a diverse fauna, including cutthroat trout; they may have reached it during a possible past stage where it was overflowing.

Loess Plateau Plateau in north/northwest China

The Chinese Loess Plateau, or simply the Loess Plateau, is a plateau in north-central China formed of loess, a clastic silt-like sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. It is located southeast of the Gobi Desert and is surrounded by the Yellow River. It includes parts of the Chinese provinces of Gansu, Shaanxi and Shanxi. The depositional setting of the Chinese Loess Plateau was shaped by the tectonic movement in the Neogene period, after which strong southeast winds caused by the East Asian Monsoon transported sediment to the plateau during the Quaternary period. The three main morphological types in the Loess Plateau are loess platforms, ridges and hills, formed by the deposition and erosion of loess. Most of the loess comes from the Gobi Desert and other nearby deserts. The sediments were transported to the Loess Plateau during interglacial periods by southeasterly prevailing winds and winter monsoon winds. After the deposition of sediments on the plateau, they were gradually compacted to form loess under the arid climate.

Tripti Bhattacharya is the Thonis Family Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Syracuse University.

Mundafan Body of water

Mundafan was a former lake in Saudi Arabia, within presently desert-like areas. It formed during the Pleistocene and Holocene, when orbitally mediated changes in climate increased monsoon precipitation in the peninsula, allowing runoff to form a lake with a maximum area of 300 square kilometres (120 sq mi). It was populated by fishes and surrounded by reeds and savanna, which supported human populations.

References

  1. 1 2 "Hotter, Drier, Hungrier: How Global Warming Punishes the World's Poorest" . Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  2. 1 2 "UA researchers use mud to predict monsoon trends". KVOA.com. 2018-09-21. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  3. 1 2 3 "Chemical fossils". Chemistry World. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  4. 1 2 "The arc of TEX86 with Jessica Tierney". Forecast: a podcast about climate science and climate scientists. 2017-07-12. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Jessica Tierney – Honors Program". Honors Program. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Jessica Tierney – Google Scholar Citations". scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  7. 1 2 3 "Ancient humans left Africa to escape drying climate". EurekAlert!. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  8. ↑ "Jessica Tierney Named Thomas R. Brown Distinguished Chair in Integrative Science". College of Science. 2022-04-21. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  9. ↑ https://geography.arizona.edu/people/jessica-tierney
  10. ↑ "NSF recognizes 3 scientists with the Alan T. Waterman Award". www.nsf.gov. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Star, Tom Beal Arizona Daily. "Scientist loves climate history – and her tattoo proves it". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  12. ↑ Kaenel, ClimateWire, Camille von. "Horn of Africa Grows Hotter and Drier". Scientific American. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  13. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; deMenocal, Peter B.; Zander, Paul D. (2017-10-02). "A climatic context for the out-of-Africa migration". Geology. 45 (11): 1023–1026. Bibcode:2017Geo....45.1023T. doi: 10.1130/G39457.1 . ISSN   0091-7613.
  14. ↑ Mace, Mikayla. "Ocean muck used by UA researchers to study ancient monsoons, help improve forecasting". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  15. ↑ Ummenhofer, Caroline C.; Kulüke, Marco; Tierney, Jessica E. (April 2018). "Extremes in East African hydroclimate and links to Indo-Pacific variability on interannual to decadal timescales". Climate Dynamics. 50 (7–8): 2971–2991. Bibcode:2018ClDy...50.2971U. doi:10.1007/s00382-017-3786-7. hdl: 1912/10299 . ISSN   0930-7575. S2CID   134263671.
  16. ↑ "UArizona paleoclimatologist to receive NSF's highest early-career honor". University of Arizona News. 2022-04-20. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
  17. ↑ "UA Scientists Selected as Authors for International Climate Report". UANews. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  18. ↑ "UA Geoscientist Awarded Packard Fellowship". UANews. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  19. ↑ "Pieter Schenck Awards". EAOG. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  20. ↑ "Jessica Tierney Receives Macelwane Award from American Geophysical Union". Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  21. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Russell, James M.; Huang, Yongsong; Damsté, Jaap S. Sinninghe; Hopmans, Ellen C.; Cohen, Andrew S. (2008-10-10). "Northern Hemisphere Controls on Tropical Southeast African Climate During the Past 60,000 Years". Science. 322 (5899): 252–255. Bibcode:2008Sci...322..252T. doi:10.1126/science.1160485. ISSN   0036-8075. PMID   18787132. S2CID   7364713.
  22. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Russell, James M. (2009-09-01). "Distributions of branched GDGTs in a tropical lake system: Implications for lacustrine application of the MBT/CBT paleoproxy". Organic Geochemistry. 40 (9): 1032–1036. doi:10.1016/j.orggeochem.2009.04.014. ISSN   0146-6380.
  23. ↑ Tierney, J.E.; Russell, J.M.; Eggermont, H.; Hopmans, E.C.; Verschuren, D.; Sinninghe Damsté, J.S. (2010-09-01). "Environmental controls on branched tetraether lipid distributions in tropical East African lake sediments". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 74 (17): 4902–4918. Bibcode:2010GeCoA..74.4902T. doi:10.1016/j.gca.2010.06.002. ISSN   0016-7037.
  24. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Smerdon, Jason E.; Anchukaitis, Kevin J.; Seager, Richard (2013-01-17). "Multidecadal variability in East African hydroclimate controlled by the Indian Ocean". Nature. 493 (7432): 389–392. doi:10.1038/nature11785. ISSN   0028-0836.
  25. ↑ "Late-twentieth-century warming in Lake Tanganyika unprecedented since AD 500, Nature Geosci 3". 2010. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.703.892 .{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  26. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Russell, James M.; Sinninghe Damsté, Jaap S.; Huang, Yongsong; Verschuren, Dirk (2011-04-01). "Late Quaternary behavior of the East African monsoon and the importance of the Congo Air Boundary". Quaternary Science Reviews. 30 (7–8): 798–807. Bibcode:2011QSRv...30..798T. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2011.01.017. ISSN   0277-3791.
  27. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; deMenocal, Peter B. (2013-11-15). "Abrupt Shifts in Horn of Africa Hydroclimate Since the Last Glacial Maximum". Science. 342 (6160): 843–846. Bibcode:2013Sci...342..843T. doi:10.1126/science.1240411. ISSN   0036-8075. PMID   24114782. S2CID   26666581.
  28. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Oppo, Delia W.; Rosenthal, Yair; Russell, James M.; Linsley, Braddock K. (March 2010). "Coordinated hydrological regimes in the Indo-Pacific region during the past two millennia" (PDF). Paleoceanography. 25 (1): PA1102. Bibcode:2010PalOc..25.1102T. doi: 10.1029/2009pa001871 . hdl:1912/3863. ISSN   0883-8305.
  29. ↑ Tierney, Jessica E.; Russell, James M.; Huang, Yongsong (2010-03-01). "A molecular perspective on Late Quaternary climate and vegetation change in the Lake Tanganyika basin, East Africa". Quaternary Science Reviews. 29 (5–6): 787–800. Bibcode:2010QSRv...29..787T. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.11.030. ISSN   0277-3791.
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