If you are looking for a Master’s thesis project at the interface of geomorphology and geochemistry, I would like to draw your attention to an opportunity in the Geomorphology group of the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) in Potsdam.

The chemical weathering of rocks on Earth’s surface is one of the cornerstones of the carbon cycle and controls atmospheric CO₂ concentrations on geologic timescales. Weathering has traditionally been described by models of in-situ production and chemical alteration of regolith and soils. However, recent observations clearly indicate that in rapidly eroding mountain ranges bedrock landslides dominate the production and storage of fresh, unweathered sediment and that landslides may strongly influence weathering fluxes.

Within a recently-funded EU project (Link), we are investigating the impact of landslide erosion on chemical weathering. I am looking for a motivated student to tackle one of several open questions in this project. For example, how does chemical weathering in landslide deposits evolve through time? How important is the removal of a topographic load for fracture formation in the landslide scar area and the chemical weathering in mountain hillslopes? If you are more interested in geomorphology, you could also work on the distribution of residence times of rocks in landslide deposits. In other words, on what timescale are rocks in landslide deposits either removed from a hillslope or developed into a deposit that, for the purposes of chemical weathering, is indistinguishable from a soil?

The project will include fieldwork in New Zealand, and you will be collecting and analyzing the chemistry of seepage waters and/or characterizing landslide volumes and grain sizes in the field and with drone imagery.

If this project sparks your interest, or if you have any other questions, please contact me at abufe@gfz-potsdam.de.