Overview:

At Boulder Creek CZO, we study how erosion and weathering control Critical Zone architecture and evolution, concentrating on slope, climate, ecosystems and rock properties. 
The Boulder Creek CZO lies within the Boulder Creek watershed, which drains the Front Range from the Continental Divide (4120m) to the eastern plains (1480m).   This large elevation range within the watershed encompasses five climatic zones and three distinct erosion regimes.  The three erosion regimes within the watershed are (1)Glacial Scouring (2) Slow post-Laramide denudation (3)Recent base level lowering.  Each of our field areas is chosen to represent the three erosion regime ( see Figure 1). 

Questions:

What is the legacy of climate and geologic history in critical zone architecture?
How are the dynamics of key interfaces within the criticzl zone governed?
What are the feedbacks between hydrologic and ecological processes and critical zone evolution?
How do landscape position, slope aspect, microclimate and rock properties control the evolution of the critical zone?

Research Topics and Field Sampling:

To better understand the critical zone and its processes, our research topics encompasses geomorphology, geophysics, meteorology, cosmic rays, hydrology, biology, stream chemistry, glaciers, soils & weathering, and GIS & remote Sensing.  Data from field samplings can be categorized into
(1)Time Series Data - meteorological, discharge, soil temperature and moisture, snow depth, discharge, groundwater depths, precipitation, time-lapse cameras.
(2)Regular Manual Sampling - stream chemistry, snow depths, snow pits and snow chemistry.
(3)One-time sampling/characterization - geophysical properties of field areas, soil microbial communities, cosmogenic nuclides.