Dr. Brendan Roark

Research

• Seasonal, multi-decadal and centennial climate variability (e.g. ENSO, Pacific Decadal Oscillation) recorded in both surface and deep-sea corals.
• Centennial to millennial climate variability (e.g., Holocene climate variability, Younger Dryas cooling, Heinrich events, glacial-interglacial cycles) recorded in ocean sediment cores.
• High-resolution records capable of resolving the rapid and abrupt climate changes that occur on these different timescales.
• Policy and conservation issues related to coastal oceans (coral reefs in particular), fisheries, climate change, and anthropogenic effects.

Impact

I teach both undergraduate and graduate students courses in earth system sciences, global change, geochemisty, and paleoclimatology. I am particularly interested in teaching outside the classroom walls by teaching in the field and the laboratory. I have taken students to sites around Texas, Costa Rica, and the Northwest Hawaiian Islands to participate in educational and research expeditions.

My research employs a diverse analytical toolbox using environmentally sensitive isotopic (d¹³C, d¹⁸O and d¹⁵N) and trace element proxies (Sr, Mg, and Cd) to reconstruct environmental variables such as temperature, ocean circulation, salinity, river inflow, and nutrient utilization in different natural archives. I also employ a variety of geochronology methods (¹⁴C, U/Th, and skeletochronology) in order to develop high-resolution chronologies in marine archives. Finally, I run a well developed and diverse field program ranging from small boat coral drilling operations to blue water oceanography cruises with ROVs, submersibles, and AUVs as a critical part of my research program.

My research interests focus primarily on understanding natural and anthropogenic climate variability over the last 50,000 years emphasizing biogeochemical cycling and paleoceanographic reconstructions in marine and estuarine environments.

Education

Ph.D., Geography, University of California, Berkeley, 2005

M.A., Geography, University of California, Berkeley, 2001

B.A., Environmental Conservation, University of Colorado, Boulder, 1992

Awards

Texas A&M University Association of Former Students Distinguished Teaching Award (College Level), 2014

Partners in Conservation Award for Mid-Atlantic Canyons Project (co-PI), Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (in recognition of accomplishments in innovation and collaboration to address today's complex conservation and stewardship challenges), 2013 

Dean's Distinguished Achievement Award for Faculty Service, College of Geosciences, Texas A&M University, 2013

Texas A&M University Montague Scholar for Teaching Excellence, 2011

Sir Keith Murdoch Fellowship, American Australian Association for Advanced Research and Study in Australia, 2007

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