Research /instaar/ en Tahoe avalanche: What causes snow slopes to collapse? A physicist and skier explains, with tips for surviving (The Conversation) /instaar/2026/02/18/tahoe-avalanche-what-causes-snow-slopes-collapse-physicist-and-skier-explains-tips <span>Tahoe avalanche: What causes snow slopes to collapse? A physicist and skier explains, with tips for surviving (The Conversation)</span> <span><span>David J Lubinski</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-02-18T21:13:09-07:00" title="Wednesday, February 18, 2026 - 21:13">Wed, 02/18/2026 - 21:13</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2026-02/vriend-article-skiers-cross-avalanche-AscentXmedia%20E%20via%20Getty%20Images.png?h=bf1bacbe&amp;itok=VVEgU0Qb" width="1200" height="800" alt="Backcountry skiers cross avalanche slope on mountain, Tantalus Ranges (AscentXmedia/E+ via Getty Images)"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/183"> Community </a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/394" hreflang="en">Vriend</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Nathalie Vriend updated an article for The Conversation that explains what happens in an avalanche, techniques for surviving one, and how they are impacted by climate change.</div> <script> window.location.href = `https://theconversation.com/tahoe-avalanche-what-causes-snow-slopes-to-collapse-a-physicist-and-skier-explains-with-tips-for-surviving-276361`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Thu, 19 Feb 2026 04:13:09 +0000 David J Lubinski 1799 at /instaar 'Hiding in plain sight': Scientists reflect on years studying life in Antarctic desert (麻豆免费版下载Boulder Today) /instaar/2026/02/11/hiding-plain-sight-scientists-reflect-years-studying-life-antarctic-desert-cu-boulder <span>'Hiding in plain sight': Scientists reflect on years studying life in Antarctic desert (麻豆免费版下载Boulder Today)</span> <span><span>David J Lubinski</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-02-11T16:48:47-07:00" title="Wednesday, February 11, 2026 - 16:48">Wed, 02/11/2026 - 16:48</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2026-02/McKnight-measuring-streamflow-antarctica.jpg?h=02609f11&amp;itok=WfoZ7BvB" width="1200" height="800" alt="Diane McKnight collects measurements from a stream during the Antarctic summer. (Credit: Diane McKnight)"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/189"> Spotlight Faculty Fellow </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/272" hreflang="en">Gooseff</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/109" hreflang="en">McKnight</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Researchers at the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long-Term Ecological Research Program have spent more than three decades studying ecosystems in one of the world鈥檚 most hostile environments. Diane McKnight and Mike Gooseff discuss the importance of the research, its challenges, and its rewards.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/today/2026/02/11/hiding-plain-sight-scientists-reflect-years-studying-life-antarctic-desert`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Wed, 11 Feb 2026 23:48:47 +0000 David J Lubinski 1797 at /instaar Some tropical land may experience stronger-than-expected warming under climate change (麻豆免费版下载Boulder Today) /instaar/2026/02/04/some-tropical-land-may-experience-stronger-expected-warming-under-climate-change-cu <span>Some tropical land may experience stronger-than-expected warming under climate change (麻豆免费版下载Boulder Today)</span> <span><span>David J Lubinski</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-02-04T16:03:58-07:00" title="Wednesday, February 4, 2026 - 16:03">Wed, 02/04/2026 - 16:03</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2026-02/Lina%20Perez-Angel-et-al-cores-from-columbia-crop.jpg?h=2ce995fc&amp;itok=lGNnmfyF" width="1200" height="800" alt="Lina P茅rez-Angel and her colleagues studying a sediment core from Colombia. (Credit: Maria Fernanda Almanza)"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/135" hreflang="en">Sep煤lveda</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Lina P茅rez-Angel and Julio Sep煤lveda led a team to study a sediment record millions of years old from the tropical Andes. They found that the region heated up dramatically when atmospheric CO2 levels were similar to today鈥檚.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/today/2026/02/02/some-tropical-land-may-experience-stronger-expected-warming-under-climate-change`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Wed, 04 Feb 2026 23:03:58 +0000 David J Lubinski 1796 at /instaar Breaking ice, moving earth: Greenland will release more sediment into the ocean as the climate warms /instaar/2026/02/02/breaking-ice-moving-earth-greenland-will-release-more-sediment-ocean-climate-warms <span>Breaking ice, moving earth: Greenland will release more sediment into the ocean as the climate warms</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-02-02T06:00:00-07:00" title="Monday, February 2, 2026 - 06:00">Mon, 02/02/2026 - 06:00</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-7.jpg?h=7a2b8f84&amp;itok=_tf3GxOh" width="1200" height="800" alt="An iceberg sheds sediment as it melts into Torsukattak fjord in Greenland"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/113" hreflang="en">Overeem</a> </div> <a href="/instaar/gabe-allen">Gabe Allen</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default 1"> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-xlarge"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-8.jpg?itok=kd1l2-pz" width="1500" height="1157" alt="A man in a yellow hard hat, a pfd, and warm clothing smiles for the camera aboard a red and white medium-sized research boat"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>Ethan Pierce aboard the Porshild, the research vessel of the Arctic Research Station in Disko, Greenland. (Irina Overeem)</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>Greenland鈥檚 winding, rocky fjords are no strangers to research vessels. Usually, these boats give icebergs a wide berth, because they can roll over unexpectedly.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>That wasn鈥檛 the case, though, for the boats carrying INSTAAR fellow and 麻豆免费版下载associate professor </span><a href="/instaar/irina-overeem" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="f737fb16-da4e-4bc8-8013-9f33ea0a8929" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Irina Overeem"><span>Irina Overeem</span></a><span> and her former PhD student </span><a href="https://sites.google.com/dartmouth.edu/ice-fluid-dynamics/team" rel="nofollow"><span>Ethan Pierce</span></a><span> during the 2019 and 2022 summer field seasons. They were there for the icebergs.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Relying on the caution and expertise of Greenlander captains, the scientists sidled up to the floating monoliths aboard small dinghies and carefully chipped off samples before returning to the main boat.</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-xlarge"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-3.jpg?itok=czTvm8gI" width="1500" height="1125" alt="An inflatable motor boat carries three orange, red, and black-clad researchers accross a glassy stretch of ocean toward a rocky peninsula and iceberg-strewn waters"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>A small dinghy carries Irina Overeem, Tom Marchitto, and Mia, a Greenlandic deckhand, out to sample an iceberg. (Nora Matell)</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淲e really were relying on the Greenlanders a lot for their sense of what was safe and what was not,鈥 Pierce said.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淭hey fish in that environment themselves, so they have a ton of experience doing that risk calculation,鈥 Overeem added.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Five years later, that calculated risk is paying off. Pierce, Overeem and&nbsp;University of Copenhagen associate professor emeritus </span><a href="https://ign.ku.dk/english/research-groups/geography/geomorphology-processes-and-landscapes/?pure=en/persons/15915" rel="nofollow"><span>Bent Hasholt</span></a><span> published a </span><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-67938-4" rel="nofollow"><span>new paper in Nature Communications documenting how icebergs bring sediment from Greenland out to sea</span></a><span>.&nbsp;</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-xlarge"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-2.jpg?itok=UhBBrGe7" width="1500" height="1125" alt="A man in red aboard a red kayak is barely visible as he paddles between plentiful icebergs the size of trucks in a Greenlandic fjord on a cloudy day"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em>Tom Marchitto paddles a packraft out to sample a dirty iceberg in Nuup Kangerlua (Irina Overeem)</em><br>&nbsp;</p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>The investigation is the first to unravel the complex process underlying a phenomenon that has an outsized impact on the Arctic Ocean鈥檚 chemistry. The scientists estimate that icebergs account for around one third of all of the sediment leaving Greenland (the rest comes from meltwater). That sediment unloads nutrients into Arctic waters, which support organisms at every scale 鈥 from phytoplankton to whales.</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-xlarge"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-4.jpg?itok=hrpfldY9" width="1500" height="1125" alt="A woman in sunglasses and a PFD poses with a large-mouthed fish. The ocean and a large rocky hill behind it are visible in the background in midday light."> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>Irina Overeem poses with her catch in a Greenlandic fjord. (Tom Marchitto)</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>Importantly, the scientists were also able to determine the effect of climate change on this process. As the planet warms, icebergs will deposit more and more sediment into the ocean.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淭his is the first modern study of this process that can say, 鈥榳ith a warming climate we鈥檙e going to see more transport of ice-rafted debris,鈥欌 Pierce said.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>A back-of-the-envelope calculation</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Greenland contributes around 15 percent of the sediment that ends up in the ocean each year 鈥 an exceptionally high figure for a landmass of its size. Nearly a decade ago, Overeem published&nbsp;</span><a href="https://share.google/zXpIf1ocz2TM3OiIp" rel="nofollow"><span>another paper</span></a><span> characterizing the amount of sediment coming from Greenlandic meltwater rivers. She found that these waterways were unloading a vast amount, but they didn鈥檛 account for all of Greenland's sediment export.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>At the time, Overeem already knew that icebergs might be the missing piece of the puzzle. For years, she had seen dark stripes of debris crisscrossing icebergs in Greenlandic fjords. And, ice-derived debris has long been found in sediment cores pulled from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. But, scientists had yet to figure out how exactly the debris got in the ice or how much of it left the continent this way.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>On the flight home from her 2016 field season, Overeem started jotting down rough equations based on previous research from colleagues. The numbers shocked her.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淎t the time, I did a back-of-the-envelope calculation,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 was shocked at how much it could be.鈥 鈥淚 pitched the idea to the 麻豆免费版下载Research and Innovation Office and they funded a pilot project.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>By 2019, Overeem brought Pierce on as a PhD student and put him on the project. Unfortunately, the pandemic delayed multiple field seasons, but Pierce used the extra time to drill down on a mathematical model of how the debris ends up in the ice in the first place.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>According to Pierce鈥檚 model, the weight of the massive Greenland ice sheet creates pressure points where the ice comes into contact with individual grains of sand on the earth below. These pressure points create heat, which melts the ice. The meltwater then refreezes around the grain of sand. As the ice sheet slides downhill toward the ocean, this process sucks up more and more sediment into the bottom layer of ice. Eventually, the ice reaches the waters edge and breaks off, forming a sediment-laden ice berg.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Pierce's model combined with the field sample data produce the central insight of the new paper 鈥 that icebergs contribute about one third of Greenland鈥檚 sediment export.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淭here are lab experiments and grain-scale models that show that these processes happen, but Ethan is the first person who put together a numerical model that can then be extrapolated out on the scale of the Greenland ice sheet,鈥 Overeem said.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>Powering new research</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Now that Overeem鈥檚 back-of-the-envelope calculation has grown into a sophisticated model, it鈥檚 time for the researchers to pass their data on to other scientists. The model could be useful for myriad other projects, including offering hints into ancient climatic conditions.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Another potential application is more forward looking. As sediment in the Arctic Ocean increases, it will increase the abundance of minerals like iron and silicon. Those are minerals used by phytoplankton, the microscopic foundation of the Arctic marine food web.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淧eople who are good at observing phytoplankton over the long-term record have seen an uptick in Greenland,鈥 Overeem said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 definitely some interest in this from that community.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>It鈥檚 not yet clear exactly how an increase in sediment might affect life in the ocean, but the question could spark further collaborations within the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research. Tom Marchitto鈥檚 laboratory excels at precise measurements of dissolved chemicals, a capability that could further resolve the contents of Greenlandic sediment. On the biological side of things, INSTAAR director Nicole Lovenduski鈥檚 lab specializes in modeling phytoplankton blooms in the Arctic.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淭his is just one part of a number of potential connections,鈥 Overeem said.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>For now, Pierce will move onto other projects as a postdoctoral researcher at Dartmouth, and Overeem will turn her attention to other pressing surface process models. Both can rest easy knowing they placed another puzzle piece in the answer to a question that has loomed over generations of Greenlandic science.</span></p></div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-below"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><p><em>If you have questions about this story, or would like to reach out to INSTAAR for further comment, you can contact Senior Communications Specialist Gabe Allen at </em><a href="mailto:gabriel.allen@colorado.edu" rel="nofollow"><em>gabriel.allen@colorado.edu</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>A new paper from Irina Overeem and Ethan Pierce describes how icebergs export Greenlandic sediment into the Arctic Ocean 鈥 and how that process might change in the future.</div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Off</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20251217%20Overeem%20Pierce%20Greenland%20sediment-7.jpg?itok=R8BZ6LEM" width="1500" height="1125" alt="An iceberg sheds sediment as it melts into Torsukattak fjord in Greenland"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>An iceberg sheds sediment as it melts into Torsukattak Fjord in Greenland. (Irina Overeem)</span></em></p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Mon, 02 Feb 2026 13:00:00 +0000 Gabe Allen 1794 at /instaar Research highlight: Dr. Keith Musselman and the EcoTram (MRS News) /instaar/2026/01/14/research-highlight-dr-keith-musselman-and-ecotram-mrs-news <span>Research highlight: Dr. Keith Musselman and the EcoTram (MRS News)</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-01-14T09:53:42-07:00" title="Wednesday, January 14, 2026 - 09:53">Wed, 01/14/2026 - 09:53</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/article-image/FYpVWvEUIAAiUbG-2.jpg?h=252dbd8d&amp;itok=SKsr_ulc" width="1200" height="800" alt="Very long green metal structure under construction in an evergreen forest will later hold an EcoTram, a moving monitoring platform focused on water, energy, &amp; vegetation "> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/189"> Spotlight Faculty Fellow </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/99" hreflang="en">Musselman</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>INSTAAR fellow Keith Musselman and collaborators have constructed an "EcoTram" that continuously measures hydrological and ecological variables across a 400-foot transect high in the Indian Peaks. The system provides a wealth of data for investigations into shifting mountain systems.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/mrs/2026/01/09/research-highlight-dr-keith-musselman-and-ecotram`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Off</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Wed, 14 Jan 2026 16:53:42 +0000 Gabe Allen 1792 at /instaar INSTAAR鈥檚 most read news stories of 2025 /instaar/2026/01/02/instaars-most-read-news-stories-2025 <span>INSTAAR鈥檚 most read news stories of 2025</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-01-02T15:00:13-07:00" title="Friday, January 2, 2026 - 15:00">Fri, 01/02/2026 - 15:00</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2026-01/20250722%20Loch%20Oleksy%20snow%20hike.jpg?h=576519a4&amp;itok=kRmO3Ryj" width="1200" height="800" alt="Four women in outdoor gear hike up a steep snow field in front of a towering cliff in the sun"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/171" hreflang="en">Anderson R</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/243" hreflang="en">Anderson S</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/167" hreflang="en">Brakenridge</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/399" hreflang="en">Geist-Sanchez</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/123" hreflang="en">Molotch</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/336" hreflang="en">Oleksy</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/161" hreflang="en">Suding</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default 1"> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p dir="ltr"><span>It鈥檚 officially 2026, which means the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research is celebrating its 75th year as an institute. In honor of the occasion,&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/about-instaar/75th-anniversary" rel="nofollow"><span>we鈥檙e launching an anniversary webpage, putting on an event series, and launching a fundraising effort to support groundbreaking arctic and alpine science, laboratories and scientists.</span></a></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Later this year, we鈥檒l take a deep dive into the history of how INSTAAR grew from a tiny field station in the Indian Peaks into a global leader in interdisciplinary environmental science. But, before we do that, we wanted to take a more brief look back 鈥 just at the past year.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>In 2025, we published stories about innovative investigations, grassroots public outreach projects, award-winning scientists and groundbreaking publications. According to our audience data, a few stood out.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Here are INSTAAR鈥檚 most read news stories of 2025.</span></p><h2><span>The top five</span></h2><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-08/20250722%20Loch%20Oleksy%20outflow%202.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: Bella Oleksy holds up a water filter tinted yellow from diatoms at the outflow of Sky Pond in Rocky Mountain National Park on June 19, 2025. (Gabe Allen) "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-08/20250722%20Loch%20Oleksy%20outflow%202.jpg" alt="Bella Oleksy holds up a water filter tinted yellow from diatoms at the outflow of Sky Pond in Rocky Mountain National Park on June 19, 2025. (Gabe Allen)"> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/08/04/air-pollution-and-warming-are-changing-colorados-remote-alpine-lakes" rel="nofollow"><span>Air pollution and warming are changing Colorado鈥檚 remote alpine lakes</span></a></h2><p><span>This summer, INSTAAR communications specialist </span><a href="/instaar/gabe-allen" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="07843fe3-6a41-42ba-acfb-7f9db1b430df" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Gabe Allen"><span>Gabe Allen</span></a><span> followed&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/isabella-oleksy" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="5198c030-c828-4ac2-ba1f-6972fefe9c4d" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Isabella A. Oleksy"><span>Bella Oleksy</span></a><span>鈥檚 lab for a day of work high in Rocky Mountain National Park. The group leverages year-round backcountry fieldwork and a 42-year biogeochemical record of alpine lakes to investigate how alpine watersheds are changing in the 21st century.</span></p></div></div></div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-right align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-04/Map.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: A map showing the percent of the long-term (2001 to 2021) average snow-water equivalent in major regions of the Western United States as of March 31, 2025.&amp;nbsp; "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-04/Map.jpg" alt="A map showing the percent of the long-term (2001 to 2021) average snow-water equivalent in major regions of the Western United States as of March 31, 2025.&amp;nbsp;"> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/04/10/data-colorados-snowpack-lagging-behind-21st-century-average-2025" rel="nofollow"><span>The data is in: Colorado鈥檚 snowpack is lagging behind the 21st century average in 2025</span></a></h2><p dir="ltr"><span>Last spring all eyes were on The&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/research/labs-groups/mountain-hydrology-group" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="4063c9d8-1e1d-42a8-a0ac-5d8aa7cc7b79" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Mountain Hydrology Group"><span>Mountain Hydrology Group鈥檚</span></a><span> new&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/research/labs-groups/mountain-hydrology-group/western-us-swe-reports" rel="nofollow"><span>Western U.S. snow water equivalent (SWE) reports</span></a><span>. The news from this article is old now, but it鈥檚 a good reminder of the excellent hydrological modeling work here at INSTAAR. You can check out frequent updates on snow cover from Karl Rittger鈥檚&nbsp;</span><a href="https://nsidc.org/snow-today/snow-viewer" rel="nofollow"><span>Snow Today website</span></a><span>. The Mountain Hydrology Group will also once again begin putting out SWE reports in the next month or so.&nbsp;</span></p></div></div></div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-07/20250717%20Gesit%20Sanchez%20Profile%20Walking%202.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: Hunter Geist-Sanchez's summer field crew hikes to a field site near the National Renewable Energy Lab's Flatirons Campus. Left to right: Ava Boettiger, Zade Baldwin, Hunter Geist-Sanchez, Rose Young. (Gabe Allen) "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-07/20250717%20Gesit%20Sanchez%20Profile%20Walking%202.jpg" alt="Hunter Geist-Sanchez's summer field crew hikes to a field site near the National Renewable Energy Lab's Flatirons Campus. Left to right: Ava Boettiger, Zade Baldwin, Hunter Geist-Sanchez, Rose Young. (Gabe Allen)"> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/07/21/spotlight-hunter-geist-sanchez-pioneering-restoration-methods-colorado-grasslands-and" rel="nofollow"><span>Spotlight: Hunter Geist-Sanchez is pioneering restoration methods for Colorado grasslands and reconnecting with his ranching roots</span></a></h2><p dir="ltr"><a href="/instaar/hunter-geist-sanchez" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="9fe02bf0-a804-4fa1-b7e1-d8ad6ae0183a" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Hunter Geist-Sanchez"><span>Hunter Geist-Sanchez</span></a><span> is a master鈥檚 student in&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.sudinglab.org/" rel="nofollow"><span>Katharine Suding鈥檚 lab</span></a><span> studying restoration ecology with a particular focus on grasslands. Geist-Sanchez is following his life-long love of nature to develop new methods for preserving Colorado natural areas and rangelands. As a sixth-generation Coloradoan, he hopes his research can help ranchers preserve their livelihoods in the face of climate change.</span></p></div></div></div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-right align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-06/20250610%20Brakenridge%20supernovae%20Vela%20Supernova%20Remnant.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: The Vela supernova remnant, the remains of a supernova explosion 800 light-years from Earth in the southern constellation Vela, as seen from the Dark Energy Camera on the V铆ctor M. Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. In his latest paper, Robert Brakenridge identifies a radioactive carbon anomaly in tree ring records that may have been caused by radiation from the vela supernova entering Earth's atmosphere nearly 13,000 years ago. "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-06/20250610%20Brakenridge%20supernovae%20Vela%20Supernova%20Remnant.jpg" alt="The Vela supernova remnant, the remains of a supernova explosion 800 light-years from Earth in the southern constellation Vela, as seen from the Dark Energy Camera on the V铆ctor M. Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. In his latest paper, Robert Brakenridge identifies a radioactive carbon anomaly in tree ring records that may have been caused by radiation from the vela supernova entering Earth's atmosphere nearly 13,000 years ago."> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/06/10/supernovae-may-have-kicked-abrupt-climate-shifts-past-and-they-could-again" rel="nofollow"><span>Supernovae may have kicked off abrupt climate shifts in the past, and they could again</span></a></h2><p dir="ltr"><span>INSTAAR senior research associate&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/robert-brakenridge" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="a49f258f-b2b5-46f0-8da8-ad121aa3e203" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Robert Brakenridge"><span>Robert Brakenridge</span></a><span> is always looking for ways to tie-in his life-long interest in astrophysics to his career in geologic and hydrologic research. In a groundbreaking paper published earlier this year, he uncovered potential links between stellar explosions and ancient climate changes.&nbsp;</span></p></div></div></div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-06/20250618%20Robert%20Anderson%20Suzanne%20Anderson%20Rock%20Glaciers.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: The headwall of Mount Sopris looms above a large rock glacier in the basin below. Photo by Robert Anderson. "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-06/20250618%20Robert%20Anderson%20Suzanne%20Anderson%20Rock%20Glaciers.jpg" alt="The headwall of Mount Sopris looms above a large rock glacier in the basin below. Photo by Robert Anderson."> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/06/18/beneath-crumbling-walls-how-rock-glaciers-took-over-southern-rockies" rel="nofollow"><span>Beneath crumbling walls: how rock glaciers took over the southern rockies</span></a></h2><p dir="ltr"><span>The last of Colorado鈥檚 true glaciers are small and disappearing fast. Yet, rock glaciers, stable ice sheets locked between layers of rock and debris, are prevalent across the Colorado Rockies. In a new paper this year,&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/robert-s-anderson" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="c88f50c5-e3fd-4fa7-b6bb-75ff7653ef0e" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Robert S. Anderson"><span>Robert</span></a><span> and&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/suzanne-anderson" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="8a2294f1-0b14-4bb4-9083-a6e8a7cd7e02" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Suzanne Anderson"><span>Suzanne Anderson</span></a><span>, along with their mentees, uncover the geologic history of this phenomenon.</span></p></div></div></div><h2><span>The runner up</span></h2><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-lightgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-right align-left col gallery-item"> <a href="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-02/suding-dunn-house-IML-BATP-03917.jpg" class="glightbox ucb-gallery-lightbox" data-gallery="gallery" data-glightbox="description: Suding stands under a favorite apple tree, Boulder Open Space. Credit: Matt Talarico, Impact Media Lab. "> <img class="ucb-colorbox-square" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/2025-02/suding-dunn-house-IML-BATP-03917.jpg" alt="Suding stands under a favorite apple tree, Boulder Open Space. Credit: Matt Talarico, Impact Media Lab."> </a> </div> <h2><a href="/instaar/2025/02/06/franklin-institute-selects-katharine-suding-bower-award-achievement-science" rel="nofollow"><span>Franklin Institute selects Katharine Suding for the Bower Award for Achievement in Science</span></a></h2><p><span>Over the past three decades, INSTAAR鈥檚&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/katharine-suding" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="046a5124-6d3d-49d4-a187-2c7561acd1cc" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Katharine Suding"><span>Katharine Suding</span></a><span> has become one of the most influential voices in the field of restoration ecology. Her work is locally relevant to Colorado, yet it has influenced scientists around the world. This year, the Franklin Institute awarded her the Bower Award for Achievement in Science. Past winners include Jane Goodall, Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein and Marie Curie.</span></p></div></div></div></div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-below"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><p><em>If you have questions about this story, or would like to reach out to INSTAAR for further comment, you can contact Senior Communications Specialist Gabe Allen at </em><a href="mailto:gabriel.allen@colorado.edu" rel="nofollow"><em>gabriel.allen@colorado.edu</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Between ambitious projects, big awards and groundbreaking publications, it鈥檚 been a newsy year at the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research. Here are our top stories of 2025.</div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Off</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2026-01/20250722%20Loch%20Oleksy%20snow%20hike.jpg?itok=9gc5uQfk" width="1500" height="1151" alt="Four women in outdoor gear hike up a steep snow field in front of a towering cliff in the sun"> </div> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Fri, 02 Jan 2026 22:00:13 +0000 Gabe Allen 1786 at /instaar Precious waterways: how contaminated mountain streams could power American-made technology /instaar/2025/12/16/precious-waterways-how-contaminated-mountain-streams-could-power-american-made <span>Precious waterways: how contaminated mountain streams could power American-made technology</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-12-16T09:45:07-07:00" title="Tuesday, December 16, 2025 - 09:45">Tue, 12/16/2025 - 09:45</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-12/AdobeStock_293263314.jpeg?h=9c436ac8&amp;itok=vxNgQgXf" width="1200" height="800" alt="A river below a jagged mountain pass in Colorado in the fall at sunset"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/276" hreflang="en">Marchitto</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/109" hreflang="en">McKnight</a> </div> <a href="/instaar/gabe-allen">Gabe Allen</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default 1"> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p dir="ltr"><span>Most people have never heard of neodymium, a strong, silvery rare-earth metal, yet almost all of us carry around a little bit of it in our pocket every day.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淵our cell phone, your computer 鈥 all of these things run on lanthanides, a series of 14 elements that are relatively heavy metals,鈥 </span><a href="/instaar/" data-entity-type="external" rel="nofollow"><span>Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research</span></a><span> (INSTAAR) geochemist and 麻豆免费版下载professor&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/tom-marchitto" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="176e2468-1156-41ef-a92d-00c8ec1f2632" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Tom Marchitto"><span>Tom Marchitto</span></a><span> said.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Though these elements are rare, they are found in unusually high concentrations in certain streams here in Colorado. The phenomenon occurs along Colorado鈥檚 鈥渕ineral belt,鈥 where acidic waterways pick up metals trapped in bedrock. With Marchitto鈥檚 help, INSTAAR biogeochemist and 麻豆免费版下载distinguished professor&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/diane-m-mcknight" data-entity-type="node" data-entity-uuid="21b1345a-c80c-4e32-8ddf-12b5c9e2c370" data-entity-substitution="canonical" rel="nofollow" title="Diane M. McKnight"><span>Diane Mcknight</span></a><span> and collaborators have spent the past decade investigating this process at old mining sites and natural 鈥渁cid rock鈥 deposits around the state.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Now, their efforts could lead to another exciting discovery. McKnight and Marchitto are part of&nbsp;</span><a href="https://arpa-e.energy.gov/news-and-events/news-and-insights/energy-department-announces-25-million-extract-critical-minerals-wastewater" rel="nofollow"><span>a new $2.8 million project</span></a><span>, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and led by the University of Missouri, that seeks a method for extracting rare earths from acid rock drainage for industrial uses.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>The project comes at a fortuitous moment. Recently, the Trump administration&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/11/21/nx-s1-5601696/rare-earths-china-trump-pentagon" rel="nofollow"><span>has sought ways to decrease America鈥檚 reliance on China for rare earths by subsidizing U.S. production</span></a><span>. At the same time, metal contamination from acid rock drainage is increasing in Colorado and&nbsp;</span><a href="https://coloradosun.com/2025/09/12/200-dead-fish-in-colorado-reservoir-have-local-groups-concerned-over-climate-changes-impact-on-mountain-waters/" rel="nofollow"><span>causing environmental harm</span></a><span>. If the new project is successful, it could improve water quality by removing metal while simultaneously producing essential raw materials for personal electronics, electric vehicles and military technologies.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淚mproving water quality impacts associated with acid mine and rock drainage is really expensive,鈥 McKnight said. 鈥淚f there鈥檚 a valuable commodity that could be recovered through that process, it could change the equation.鈥</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-xlarge"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/20251216%20McKnight%20Marchitto%20ARPAE.jpg?itok=CSHHfx7k" width="1500" height="1000" alt="A young man and woman in waders stoop over a metal tray by the side of an orange-tinted creek"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em>Master's students Athena Bolin and Adam Odorisio collect water samples from a creek near Aspen. (courtesy photo)</em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>An unexpected finding</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>About a decade ago, rare earth metals weren鈥檛 yet on Diane McKnight鈥檚 radar. For years, she and her students had characterized processes leading to metals like copper and zinc leaching into waterways along Colorado鈥檚 mineral belt. But, a serendipitous accident that led to a further discovery.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淎 colleague happened to put my student, Garrett Rue鈥檚, samples at the end of a run testing for rare earths,鈥 McKnight said. 鈥淎fterward, he got in touch with Garrett and asked, 鈥渨here are these samples from? There鈥檚 200 micrograms per liter of neodymium!鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Later, Rue&nbsp;</span><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34347463/" rel="nofollow"><span>published a paper in Environmental Science and Technology based on these findings</span></a><span>. In the years since, a steady stream of passionate students have scrounged funding to continue investigating the presence of rare earths in mountain watersheds. Marchitto has supported these efforts through&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/research/labs-groups/icp-ms-trace-metals-lab" rel="nofollow"><span>his lab鈥檚 powerful mass spectrometer</span></a><span>, capable of measuring trace amounts of metals in water samples.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.aspentimes.com/news/climate-change-causing-increase-in-metals-concentrations-in-streams-study-finds/" rel="nofollow"><span>One insight from this work</span></a><span> is that metal concentrations in Colorado are increasing over time as warming summer temperatures thaw previously frozen sites containing acid-forming bedrock. This result is alarming from an ecological perspective. If metal concentrations climb too high, they can kill aquatic species,&nbsp;</span><a href="https://coloradosun.com/2025/09/12/200-dead-fish-in-colorado-reservoir-have-local-groups-concerned-over-climate-changes-impact-on-mountain-waters/" rel="nofollow"><span>as evidenced by one mountain lake that washed up hundreds of dead fish this summer</span></a><span>.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>But, these increased concentrations may also present an opportunity. That鈥檚 according to Baolin Deng and Pan Ni, two distinguished researchers at the&nbsp;</span><a href="https://water.missouri.edu/" rel="nofollow"><span>University of Missouri鈥檚 Missouri Water Center</span></a><span>, who are now&nbsp;</span><a href="https://showme.missouri.edu/2025/turning-waste-into-wealth-mizzou-researchers-target-missouri-mines-for-critical-materials/" rel="nofollow"><span>working to unlock an efficient process</span></a><span> capable of extracting rare earths from acid rock drainage.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>Molecular puzzle pieces</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>For the proposal to work, the process must be both efficient and selective. The inputs required must be low enough to make the method economically viable, while the outputs must be concentrated enough to provide a high-quality source of rare earth metals.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>That鈥檚 why Deng and Ni have decided to target these elements at a molecular level. They propose creating ion-imprinted polymers, made from seafood byproducts. These polymers will act like jigsaw puzzle pieces. Most molecules will bounce right off them, but the targeted element will fit perfectly into the ion-imprinted cavity, allowing the researchers to conserve target elements and filter out the rest.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Designing these polymers is a monumental task. To increase their chances of success, the researchers will deploy artificial intelligence to help them iterate and refine.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淭hese elements are like twin brothers when it comes to telling them apart,鈥 Ni said. 鈥淢aybe one weighs just a little more than the other. It鈥檚 incredibly challenging to differentiate them, but Professor Deng and our research team have proven it鈥檚 possible. Now, AI will further enhance the selectivity of our material.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>While the University of Missouri team is busy refining polymers, Marchitto, McKnight, and a to-be-hired PhD student will have their work cut out for them in Colorado. The team will work to identify potential sites for extraction, while also continuing to probe questions about the geochemical processes activated in these waterways.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淲e鈥檙e also interested in the natural aspects of acid rock drainage that haven鈥檛 been explored much, like 鈥榳hat controls rare earth concentrations? And, 鈥榟ow are they precipitating out in the stream bed?鈥欌 Marchitto said. 鈥淜nowing more about the fundamentals of the geochemistry will inform what kind of recovery efforts can be used. It鈥檚 all connected.鈥</span></p></div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-below"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><p><em>If you have questions about this story, or would like to reach out to INSTAAR for further comment, you can contact Senior Communications Specialist Gabe Allen at </em><a href="mailto:gabriel.allen@colorado.edu" rel="nofollow"><em>gabriel.allen@colorado.edu</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Diane McKnight and Tom Marchitto are collaborators on a new project looking for a way to extract rare earth metals from contaminated Colorado streams. The goal is to improve water quality while also increasing the domestic supply of raw materials for advanced technologies.</div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/AdobeStock_293263314.jpeg?itok=aiiqsqWc" width="1500" height="1000" alt="A river below a jagged mountain pass in Colorado in the fall at sunset"> </div> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Tue, 16 Dec 2025 16:45:07 +0000 Gabe Allen 1785 at /instaar Changing Winters Leave Indigenous Alaskans on Thin Ice (Eos) /instaar/2025/12/15/changing-winters-leave-indigenous-alaskans-thin-ice-eos <span>Changing Winters Leave Indigenous Alaskans on Thin Ice (Eos)</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-12-15T06:00:00-07:00" title="Monday, December 15, 2025 - 06:00">Mon, 12/15/2025 - 06:00</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-12/Yukon-River-Delta.jpg?h=c74750f6&amp;itok=6SIFtaXA" width="1200" height="800" alt="An aerial view of an icy river delta"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/99" hreflang="en">Musselman</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>INSTAAR's Arctic Rivers Project is blending Indigenous knowledge with climate science to describe a shifting arctic environment. Eos news reports on the project's unique blend of methodologies, including participatory mapping, remote sensing and biological modeling.</div> <script> window.location.href = `https://eos.org/articles/changing-winters-leave-indigenous-alaskans-on-thin-ice`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Mon, 15 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000 Gabe Allen 1784 at /instaar How an experiment in the mountains could reveal the future of alpine plants (KUNC) /instaar/2025/12/12/how-experiment-mountains-could-reveal-future-alpine-plants-kunc <span>How an experiment in the mountains could reveal the future of alpine plants (KUNC)</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-12-12T06:00:00-07:00" title="Friday, December 12, 2025 - 06:00">Fri, 12/12/2025 - 06:00</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-12/Niwot.jpeg?h=b1dad266&amp;itok=xZitxNAu" width="1200" height="800" alt="researchers in outdoor clothing kneel in quadrats on snow-speckled alpine tundra near a weather stations with rocky peaks in the background"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/396" hreflang="en">Emery</a> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Researchers in Nancy Emery's lab are investigating how alpine plants respond to climate change at Niwot Ridge. Anticipated funding cuts could threaten the long-term ecological records that make this research possible.</div> <script> window.location.href = `https://www.kunc.org/kunc/2025-12-04/alpine-plants`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:00:00 +0000 Gabe Allen 1783 at /instaar What can a mile-long stick of ice, stored away for 33 years, tell us about Earth鈥檚 climate? /instaar/2025/12/11/what-can-mile-long-stick-ice-stored-away-33-years-tell-us-about-earths-climate <span>What can a mile-long stick of ice, stored away for 33 years, tell us about Earth鈥檚 climate?</span> <span><span>Gabe Allen</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-12-11T10:43:41-07:00" title="Thursday, December 11, 2025 - 10:43">Thu, 12/11/2025 - 10:43</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-12/20251121%20Jones%20Markle%20Chase%20Morris%20ice%20core%20facility.jpg?h=e1f97b1d&amp;itok=TUs9OMkj" width="1200" height="800" alt="A woman in winter clothing poses in the aisle between racks of metal tubes"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/177"> Research </a> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-tags" itemprop="keywords"> <span class="visually-hidden">Tags:</span> <div class="ucb-article-tag-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-tags"></i> </div> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/115" hreflang="en">Jones</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/157" hreflang="en">Markle</a> <a href="/instaar/taxonomy/term/393" hreflang="en">Morris</a> </div> <a href="/instaar/gabe-allen">Gabe Allen</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default 1"> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p dir="ltr"><span>After years as a professional research assistant at INSTAAR鈥檚 stable isotope lab,&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/valerie-morris" rel="nofollow"><span>Valerie Morris</span></a><span> estimates she鈥檚 processed more than 10 kilometers of ice from around the world.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淵ou鈥檝e done more ice than the&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.bolderboulder.com/" rel="nofollow"><span>Bolder Boulder</span></a><span>,鈥 co-principal investigator&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/tyler-jones" rel="nofollow"><span>Tyler Jones</span></a><span> joked around a table at the lab recently. 鈥淪he鈥檚 done more high-resolution ice measurements than just about anyone in the world.鈥</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-large"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/20251114%20Jones%20Morris%20Markle%20Chase%20Ice%20Core-1.jpg?itok=gq-KY1Zn" width="1500" height="1000" alt="A woman in a black shirt with her hair up reaches into a freezer in profile. Her face is lit by a light within."> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>Valerie Morris loads an ice core sample into a carousel in the stable isotope lab at INSTAAR. The carousel is the front end of a continuous flow analysis system developed by Morris and Bruce Vaughn, which continuously measures isotopic ratios for hydrogen and oxygen as the ice core melts. (Gabe Allen)</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>This fall, Morris loaded yet another chunk of ice into the one-of-a-kind ice analysis system at the lab. But, this one was significant. It was the final sample for a project that she and other lab members began a year-and-a-half before 鈥 to reanalyze an ice core that was drilled 33 years ago in Greenland using modern techniques.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>The ice core in question was extracted at the Greenland Ice Sheet Project Two (GISP2) from 1988 to 1993. It took scientists five years to drill down from the top of the ice sheet to the bedrock. They were left with a cylinder of ice more than a mile long.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Though the effort was great, the payoff was worth it. Within the ice were&nbsp;</span><a href="https://nsidc.org/learn/ask-scientist/core-climate-history" rel="nofollow"><span>chemical signatures of past temperatures, climate shifts and volcanic eruptions</span></a><span>. The deeper those signatures, the older. At its base, the ice core dated back more than 100,000 years.</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-large"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/20251114%20Jones%20Morris%20Markle%20Chase%20Ice%20Core-4.jpg?itok=c6EPXdRF" width="1500" height="1000" alt="A woman drives a computer station in a laboratory while two smiling men look on"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em><span>Brooke Chase looks at a readout of isotopic ratios from an ice core as Bradley Markle (left) and Tyler Jones (right) look on. (Gabe Allen)</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>Shortly after the ice core was extracted, researchers analyzed the chemical contents of samples spanning its length. Their results, combined with other records,&nbsp;</span><a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/97JC00162" rel="nofollow"><span>provided a better understanding of Earth鈥檚 climate history from the start of the last ice age to today</span></a><span>.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Yet, this earlier analysis was also limited. Sampling methods at the time required the scientists to melt down meter-long chunks of ice at a time. That meant, at best, each data point represented an average over about a decade of history.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Today, technicians at the stable isotope lab use a system developed by Morris and INSTAAR fellow emeritus Bruce Vaughn in 2009. Instead of measuring large, discrete chunks of ice, the system melts each sample slowly from tip to tail. As the sample melts, the water is quickly sucked into a matrix of instruments. The technique allows the scientists to analyze the ice millimeter by millimeter 鈥 literally.</span></p><div class="feature-layout-callout feature-layout-callout-large"><div class="ucb-callout-content"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/20251121%20Jones%20Markle%20Chase%20Morris%20group%20photo.jpg?itok=Vyi9pQh_" width="1500" height="969" alt="A group of 10 people in winter clothing pose for a photo against a white laboratory wall. An insignia reads NSF Ice Core Facility on an insulated door behind the group."> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p dir="ltr"><em><span>The team of scientists that reconstructed the length of the GISP2 ice core poses at the NSF-Ice Core Facility. From Left to Right: Rhys-Jasper Leon, Richard Nunn, Ella Johnson, Valerie Morris, Adira Lunken, Brooke Chase, Tirso Jesus Lara Rivas, Max Eshbaugh, Megan Erskine, Theo Carr.</span></em></p> </span> </div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>Using this method, lab members knew they could unlock new information in what was left of the GISP2 ice core, which has been stored in the National Ice Core Facility in Lakewood for the past three decades. Though much of the volume of the ice core was consumed by previous analyses, almost all of its length was preserved in the archive. Over the past year-and-a-half, Morris, PhD student Brooke Chase, and a team of research assistants reconstructed more than a mile of ice from GISP2 and ran it through the instruments at the lab.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>The data they gathered has the potential to answer pressing questions about Earth鈥檚 past climate. Last winter, the lab&nbsp;</span><a href="/instaar/2025/03/26/thawing-mysteries-ancient-climate-changes" rel="nofollow"><span>published a new paper identifying periods of climatic stability preceding abrupt warming events during the last ice age</span></a><span>. That analysis relied on data from the newer&nbsp;</span><a href="https://eastgrip.org/uk.html" rel="nofollow"><span>East Greenland Ice-Core Project</span></a><span>. Chase is now busy processing and analyzing the data from GISP2, and the preliminary results seem to contradict these earlier findings.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淏rooke has some preliminary results suggesting that we are not getting the same answers,鈥 Jones said. 鈥淏ut we only have a small chunk of time so far, so we鈥檙e sitting here waiting until we have the final data.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Resolving these contradictions might unlock a new understanding of these abrupt warming events in the past, or it might further muddy waters. Either way, the researchers now have much more detail to parse through than before. The new project provided around 1,000 times more data points per meter of ice than the previous sampling effort. At its best, each value now represents a few months of climate history.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淲hat were trying to do with this project is see what Earth was capable of at higher frequencies,鈥 Jones said. 鈥淵ou lose the ability to look at variability in the climate when you only measure every meter. But if you can look at a higher resolution, you can see those changes.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Although ancient history may seem far removed from the pressing concerns of modern climate change, it's more relevant than it appears. Understanding how Earth鈥檚 climate evolved is essential to scientist鈥檚 ability to understand current climate dynamics and predict future outcomes.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>鈥淲e only have about 40 years of satellite observations of Earth鈥檚 climate, and a few hundred years of people standing around with thermometers,鈥 co-principle investigator Bradley Markle explained. 鈥淭he time scales that people care about are on the order of decades and centuries, but to understand variability on those time scales you have to look at records of Earth鈥檚 climate over thousands of years.鈥</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Learn more:</span></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://nsidc.org/learn/ask-scientist/core-climate-history" rel="nofollow"><span>What do ice cores reveal about the past? (National Snow and Ice Data Center)</span></a></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="/instaar/2025/03/26/thawing-mysteries-ancient-climate-changes" rel="nofollow"><span>Thawing the Mysteries of ancient climate changes (INSTAAR)</span></a></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/hole-drilled-greenland-s-heart-reveals-ice-ready-slide-sea" rel="nofollow"><span>Inside an ice stream (Science)</span></a></p></div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-below"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><p><em>If you have questions about this story, or would like to reach out to INSTAAR for further comment, you can contact Senior Communications Specialist Gabe Allen at </em><a href="mailto:gabriel.allen@colorado.edu" rel="nofollow"><em>gabriel.allen@colorado.edu</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Researchers at the stable isotope lab just finished resampling more than a mile of ice from Greenland. Further analysis will probe unanswered questions about climate change, sea ice and Earth鈥檚 history.</div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/instaar/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-12/20251121%20Jones%20Markle%20Chase%20Morris%20ice%20core%20facility.jpg?itok=jXlQa-MY" width="1500" height="1125" alt="A woman in winter clothing poses in the aisle between racks of metal tubes"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><em>Brooke Chase stands in the main storage area of the National Science Foundation Ice Core Facility. This part of the facility is held at -36 degrees Celsius and houses over 30,000 meters of ice from polar regions around the world.&nbsp;</em></p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> <div>Brooke Chase stands in the main storage area of the National Science Foundation Ice Core Facility. This part of the facility is held at -36 degrees Celsius and houses over 30,000 meters of ice from polar regions around the world.</div> Thu, 11 Dec 2025 17:43:41 +0000 Gabe Allen 1782 at /instaar