 |
| Visiting Fellows Home | Apply for Fellowship | Visiting Fellows Listing | Contact Us |
Delores Robinson
|
Project: How does erosion affect mountain building?Delores Robinson is an associate professor at the University of Alabama. She studies how mountain belts grow and change in different environments—evolving from colliding plates to mature ranges. While at CIRES, she will work with Peter Molnar, Greg Tucker, Roger Bilham, and Anne Sheehan to investigate the role erosion plays in orogeny (mountain building). Rivers, rain, freeze-thaw cycles, and other forms of erosion displace rocks, changing the landscape’s gravitational and frictional balance and, hence, the way the mountain range evolves. Using the Himalaya as her laboratory, Robinson will employ landscape-evolution modeling, data from seismograph stations, and numerical experiments to examine how erosion interacts with tectonics. The project will result in an integrated cross-section of the Tibetan Himalaya that quantitatively accounts for how erosion has altered the surface and subsurface anatomy. The most rewarding aspects of the research, says Robinson, are being able to “immerse myself in a subject I find intellectually stimulating and learn about diverse cultures in different regions.” The next culture Robinson, along with her husband and four children ages 1 through 8, will explore is Boulder. “My children are used to the lush, green landscape of Alabama’s rolling hills, and I’m excited to introduce them to the mountains.” Sponsor: Peter Molnar Email: dmr@geo.ua.edu |
