Field & Laboratory

Field Experience

Estuaries/Tidal Inlets

  • Ameland Ebb-Tidal Delta, Ameland, Netherlands, 2017, 23 days.
    Extensive marine field campaign for SEAWAD/Kustgenese2.0 project including sediment sampling from a ship (grab & box core); sediment tracer study; Lagrangian drifter study; assembly, deployment and retrieval of measurement frames. LISST, ADV, OBS, ADCP, Aquadopp, YSI programming and data analysis.
  • Gironde Estuary, Bordeaux, France, 2018, 1 day.
    Estuarine Physics Summer School at the University of Bordeaux. ADCP, LISST, and CTD measurements; analysis of turbidity using optical and acoustic methods.
  • Solent Estuary, Southampton, UK, 2015, 1 day.
    Field excursion with group at the University of Southampton/National Oceanographic Centre. Sediment grab samples, Niskin bottles, ADCP, and CTD measurements.
terschelling
On board the Schuitengat, overlooking the Vlie ebb-tidal delta during our Ameland field campaign in 2017.  Note the waves breaking on the shoals in the background- thar be treacherous waters ahead, me mateyYarr!

Mudflats

  • Eastern & Western Scheldt Estuaries, Zeeland, Netherlands, 2016-2018, 2022, 7 days.
    Deployment of bed level and pressure sensors, sediment sampling, benthic ecological monitoring. Also 5x field trips as teaching assistant/co-instructor for MSc/PhD field courses.
  • Wadden Sea, North Holland/Friesland, Netherlands, 2017, 2022, 2 days.
    Deployment of ADCPs along tidal watershed for SEAWAD/Kustgenese2.0 project. Teaching assistant for PhD summer school course.
wadlopen
Tidal flats of the Wadden Sea during an exceptionally calm day of our field campaign in 2017. One of the most beautiful afternoons I have ever spent.

Beaches

  • Columbia River Littoral Cell, Oregon/Washington, USA, 2019, 3 days.
    Field volunteer with USGS/OSU/Washington State Dept. of Ecology for topographic beach survey; linked to my research on sediment pathways at the Mouth of the Columbia River.
  • The Sand Engine, Kijkduin, Netherlands, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 10 days.
    Fieldwork in Hydraulic Engineering course. Optical grain size sampling, beach scarp development, nearshore circulation estimation using tracer dye, estuarine process monitoring in small lagoon, surf zone sediment transport with paired ADV/OBS.
  • Texel Paal 9, Texel, Netherlands, 2017, 2022, 2 day.
    NCK Summer School, as participant and later as teaching assistant. Grain size, surf and swash zone processes, runup, ADCP/ADV/OBS instruments.
BensonBeach
Benson Beach, Washington, USA, at the crack of dawn prior to our beach survey.  Not pictured: dead whale that we initially thought was a giant log and almost inadvertently set up our base station on top of.

Dikes/Levees

  • Hedwige-Prosperpolder, Netherlands/Belgium, 2022, 1 day. Participated as test subject in assessment of human instability due to wave overtopping on dikes.
One of the zanier things I’ve had the opportunity to do: suiting up in a safety harness and getting knocked over by waves to help my colleagues better understand the safety of people walking along dikes in storm conditions.

Laboratory Experience

Sediment Analysis

  • Malvern Mastersizer
  • Keyence VHX-5000 Digital Microscope (see my sand photos!)
  • Fluorescent and magnetic tracer sand separation
letsCountSomeSand
Laboratory setup for separating fluorescent magnetic tracer particles from native sand.  We had many magnets, UV lights, and tweezers.  The working title of my dissertation was, “Counting Sand in Rooms with No Windows“…