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Christina RiesselmanBA (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)
PhD (Stanford University)

Geology
Office – Room Gn1, 360 Leith Walk
Tel +64 3 479 7505

Marine Science
Office – Room 105, 310 Castle Street
Tel +64 3 479 5732

Email christina.riesselman@otago.ac.nz
Google Scholar: Christina Riesselman
ORCID orcid.org/0000-0002-2436-4306

PhD opportunity in paleoceanography and geochemistry

Sea ice, nutrient utilization, and primary production on the Wilkes Land Margin

Primary supervisor: Associate Professor Christina Riesselman, Departments of Geology and Marine Science, University of Otago, New Zealand

Co-advisors: Associate Professor Rebecca Robinson, Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Dr Robert Van Hale, Department of Chemistry, University of Otago

Research Interests

Examining the sediment-water interface aboard the RVIB Nathanial B. Palmer. Credit: R. Stevens .Examining the sediment-water interface aboard the RVIB Nathanial B. Palmer. Credit: R. Stevens

I am a paleoceanographer with a focus on Southern Ocean response to   changing climate.  My research uses stable isotope geochemistry and   diatom micropaleontology in marine sediments to examine the evolution of   the Antarctic cryosphere through the Cenozoic.    In support of these aims, I also participate in collaborative   investigations into the modern controls on phytoplankton community   structure.  This modern-process research underscores the role of   biogenic marine sedimentation as a uniquely sensitive recorder   of past conditions, both geochemically and from an assemblage-based   perspective.

Postgraduate student supervision

Current

  • Jacob Anderson (PhD) – Determining Antarctica's terrestrial climate history from microbial populations in permafrost
  • Meghan Duffy (PhD) – Linking East Antarctic temperature with Southern Ocean productivity
  • Josie Frazer (MSc) – Reconstructing Pleistocene oceanic front positions using diatom species assemblages and organic geochemistry from Southern Ocean sediment cores
  • Holly Meyer (MSc) – Using Offshore NZ Seismic Data to Conduct Sequence Stratigraphy and Sedimentary Analysis in the Great South Basin
  • Amelia Morris (MSc) – Using sediment cores to provide a Southern Ocean reference section for key intervals of the geologic timescale between 4-8 Ma
  • Jordan Riddell (MSc) – Paleoclimatology in Central Otago, New Zealand
  • Aleisha Savage (MSc) – Construction of a Holocene-Pleistocene paleoceanographic record in the Adare Trough, Ross Sea, Antarctica
  • Luke Whibley (MSc) – Carbon cycling and burial in the waters and surface sediments of Fiordland

Recent

  • Noel Bates (MSc, 2018) – Short-term climate variability in the mid-Miocene: A Micropalaeontological and sedimentological investigation of a high-resolution maar lake sediment near Hindon, East Otago, New Zealand
  • Michael Bollen (MSc, 2019) – Holocene-Pleistocene paleoceanography in the Ross Sea, Antarctica
  • Grace Duke (PhD, 2022) – Characterising Antarctic primary productivity during the Pliocene using nitrogen bound in frustules
  • Patrick Fletcher (BSc(Hons), 2016) – Geological and geophysical evolution of Otago Harbour
  • Greer Gilmer (PhD, 2020) – Climate records from Auckland Islands, Antarctica and Lake Ohau
  • Anannya Mazumder (BSc(Hons), 2014) – Ice loss from the East Antarctic Ice Sheet during late Pleistocene interglacials
  • Rebecca Parker (MSc, 2017) – Holocene paleoclimates and paleoceanography within the Ross Sea, Antarctica using marine sediment cores
  • Laura Penrose (BSc(Hons), 2018) – A geochemical and diatom-based Holocene paleoclimate and paleoceanographic record from the eastern Ross Embayment, Antarctica
  • Oliver Rees (MSc, 2020) – Seismic characterisation of sediments in Otago Harbour, (BSc(Hons), 2018) – Seismic characterisation of sediments in Otago Harbour
  • Aleisha Savage (PGDipSci, 2020) – Holocene paleoclimate record in the Adare Trough, Antarctica
  • Briar Taylor-Silva (BSc(Hons), 2015) – Reconstructing sea ice conditions and migration of the polar frontal zone in the warm late Pliocene, Wilkes Land margin, East Antarctica
  • Olivia Truax (PhD, 2023) – Integrating proxy and model estimates of Holocene climate variability in the Ross Sea, Antarctica, (MSc, 2018) – Holocene paleoceanographic evolution at the Ross Sea-Southern Ocean interface, Antarctica

Teaching

Publications

Das, S. K., Singh, R. K., Saavedra-Pellitero, M., Gottschalk, J., Alvarez Zarikian, C. A., Lembke-Jene, L., … Moy, C. M., … Riesselman, C. R., … Expedition 383 Scientists. (2024). Recent deep-sea nematodes and agglutinated foraminifera select specific grains and bioclasts from their environments: Ecological implications. Marine Micropaleontology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.marmicro.2024.102409 Journal - Research Article

Duke, G., Frazer, J., Taylor-Silva, B., & Riesselman, C. (2024). Two new clavate Fragilariopsis and one new Rouxia diatom species with biostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental applications for the Pliocene-Pleistocene, East Antarctica. Journal of Micropalaeontology, 43(1), 139-163. doi: 10.5194/jm-43-139-2024 Journal - Research Article

Das, S. K., Mahanta, N., Sahoo, B., Singh, R. K., Alvarez Zarikian, C. A., Tiwari, M., … Riesselman, C. R., … Zhao, X. (2024). Late Miocene to Early Pliocene paleoceanographic evolution of the Central South Pacific: A deep-sea benthic foraminiferal perspective. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 647, 112252. doi: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2024.112252 Journal - Research Article

Truax, O. J., Riesselman, C. R., Wilson, G. S., Stevens, C. L., Parker, R. L., Lee, J. I., … Dagg, B., & Yoo, K.-C. (2024). Holocene paleoceanographic variability in Robertson Bay, Ross Sea, Antarctica: A marine record of ocean, ice sheet, and climate connectivity. Quaternary Science Reviews, 332, 108635. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.108635 Journal - Research Article

Torricella, F., Truax, O., Morelli, D., Battaglia, F., Corradi, N., Crosta, X., … Riesselman, C., … Colizza, E. (2024). Multi-proxy paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Robertson Bay, East Antarctica, since the last glacial period. Quaternary Science Reviews, 332, 108629. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.108629 Journal - Research Article

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