College of Earth and Mineral Sciences Research Centers

Websitehttps://www.ems.psu.edu/

Postal address
United States
Visiting addressShow on map
116 Deike Building
16802 University Park
United States

Organization profile

The College of Earth and Mineral Sciences has many state-of-the-art shared use research facilities that benefit faculty, research scientists, and students. These core facilities are physically housed in and administered by our departments, centers, and institutes or shared with other Penn State research groups.

Research Centers

Stephen Rand Crawford, Jr.
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Senior Research Assistant
Person: Academic
20082023
Brandon Robert Forsythe
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Research Assistant
Person: Academic
20172025
Bernd Haupt
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Senior Research Associate
Person: Academic
19942026
Casey Helgeson
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Assistant Research Professor
Person: Academic
20122026
Robert Eugene Nicholas
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Associate Research Professor
Person: Academic
20082026
Xianzeng Niu
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Assistant Research Professor
Person: Academic
20032021
Erica Smithwick
- Geography - Distinguished Professor
- Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences
- Institute of Energy and the Environment (IEE) - Associate Director
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Director
Person: Academic
19992026
Timothy Stapler White
- Earth and Environmental Systems Institute - Associate Research Professor
Person: Academic
19982025

108321 Citations
157 h-index
1469 Article
121 Conference article
110 Conference contribution
42 Chapter
More

AI-powered measurement verification and reporting system for agroforestry trees to estimate carbon sequestration potential
Amoah, E. I., McCloskey, P., Ouedraogo, R. S., Chelal, J., Akuleut, C., Mwambumba, B. I., Meli, B. K., Oyugi, C. A., Kibwanga, E. S., Cleophas, E. K., Ochola, F. O., Wanjiru, C. N., Morang’a, K., Mushira, L. W., Maboke, M. K., Titus, N. S., Oltimbao, S. L., Odawa, S. A., Mwegosi, G. V. & Hassan, S. M. & 2 others, Smithwick, E. A. H. & Hughes, D. P., 2026, In: Sustainable Environment. 12, 1, 2607826.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
Heterogeneous Carbonate Lithium Isotope Records Across the end-Permian Mass Extinction Indicate a Highly Perturbed Lithium Cycle in the Early Triassic
Taylor, K., Rauzi, S., Isson, T., Ibarra, D. E., Hülse, D., Kimmig, S., Payne, J. L., Altiner, D., Lehrmann, D. J., Kalderon-Asael, B., Planavsky, N. J. & Lau, K. V., Jan 2026, In: American Journal of Science. 326, p. 1-26 26 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
Survey of U.S. Adults Reveals Simpler Graph Types Improve Interpretation of Extreme Precipitation
Ruckert, K. L., Cooper, C., Roth, S. & Nicholas, R. E., Jan 2026, In: Weather, Climate, and Society. 18, 1, p. 183-200 18 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
The INFLUX network-eddy covariance in and around an urban environment
Horne, J. P., Richardson, S. J., Murphy, S. L., Kenion, H. C., Haupt, B. J., Ahlswede, B. J., Miles, N. L. & Davis, K. J., Feb 3 2026, In: Earth System Science Data. 18, 2, p. 823-843 21 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
3 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations
Unlocking the benefits of transparent and reusable science for climate risk management
Pollack, A. B., Auermuller, L., Burleyson, C. D., Campbell, J., Condon, M., Cooper, C., Coronese, M., Dangendorf, S., Doss-Gollin, J., Hegde, P., Helgeson, C., Kopp, R. E., Kwakkel, J., Lesk, C., Mankin, J., Nicholas, R. E., Rice, J., Roth, S., Srikrishnan, V. & Scheeler, M. & 4 others, Tuana, N., Vernon, C., Zhao, M. & Keller, K., Jan 20 2026, In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 123, 3, e2422157123.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
Analysis of transition metal content in glioblastoma reveals association between iron and survival
Shenoy, G., Sahu, A., Kuhn, M., Khristov, V., Heebner, M., Wilding, H., Clegg, T., Bhanja, D., Wade, Q., Liermann, L. J., Wang, D., Smith, N., Remite-Berthet, G., Khunsriraksakul, C., Palsa, K., Slagle-Webb, B., Mansouri, S. A., Zacharia, B. E., Proctor, E. A. & Connor, J., May 2025, In: Translational Oncology. 55, 102376.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
1 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations
Building resilient urban water systems: emerging opportunities for solving long-lasting challenges
Nlend, B., Reimuth, A., Yang, L. E., Jampani, M., Cristiano, E., Dewals, B., Boyer, E., Daloglu Cetinkaya, I., Diémé, L. P., Dutta, R., Feng, W., Grossi, G., Ben Nasr, W., Obaitor, O. S., Olusola, A. O., Panchanathan, A., Rab, G., Sharma, S., Wang, C. & Warter, M. M. & 2 others, Welty, C. & Tetzlaff, D., 2025, In: Hydrological Sciences Journal. 70, 12, p. 2003-2015 13 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review

Open Access
9 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations
Climate change and flooding in the Susquehanna River watershed: An exploratory analysis of county hazard mitigation plans
Silvis, V. G. & Nicholas, R. E., Jan 2025, In: International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. 116, 105143.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
3 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations
Complex networks reveal teleconnections across cascading floods in the Yangtze River Basin
Sun, F., Mejia, A., Sharma, S., Zeng, P., Hu, Y., Yang, K. & Che, Y., Oct 2025, In: Natural Hazards. 121, 17, p. 20319-20341 23 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Contrasting Depth Dependencies of Plant Root Presence and Mass Across Biomes Underscore Prolific Root-Regolith Interactions
Billings, S. A., Sullivan, P. L., Li, L., Hirmas, D. R., Nippert, J. B., Ajami, H., Flores, A. N., Singha, K., Keen, R. M., Markewitz, D., Chorover, J., Ederer, A., Silver, W. L., Unruh, M., Gerson, J., Hart, S. C., Richter, D. D., Hauser, E., McDowell, W. H. & Souza, L. F. T. & 9 others, Baneschi, I., Jarecke, K. M., Pachón Maldonado, J. C., Yang, Y., Aronson, E. L., Dere, A., Gallery, R. E., Lohse, K. & White, T., Dec 2025, In: AGU Advances. 6, 6, e2025AV002072.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Open Access
1 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations

6 Active
141 Finished

Collaborative Research: Planning: CHIRRP: Science to Advance Freshwater Ecosystem and Community Resilience in the Appalachians (SAFER Apps)
Nicholas, R. E. (PI)
National Science Foundation
9/1/24 → 8/31/26
Project: Research project
Towards regenerative landscape futures: the role of policy legacies, environmental stress, and landscape change
Smithwick, E. (PI) & Sarahgergel@ubcca, S. E. G. (CoPI)
National Science Foundation
6/1/22 → 5/31/26
Project: Research project
Belmont Forum Collaborative Research: Abandonment and rebound: Societal views on landscape- and land-use change and their impacts on water and soils (ABRESO)
White, T. S. (PI) & Jks4@psuedu, J. K. S. (CoPI)
National Science Foundation
8/15/21 → 7/31/26
Project: Research project
Collaborative Research: Investigating Ice Sheet - Solid Earth Feedbacks in West Antarctica: Implications for Ice Sheet Evolution and Stability
Nyblade, A. A. (PI) & Pollard, D. (CoPI)
National Science Foundation
9/15/18 → 8/31/26
Project: Research project
Uncovering functional interactions between RNA methylation and the epigenome in hematopoietic and malignant stem cells
Pollard, D. (PI), Louwagie, A. M. A. M. (PI) & Vu, L. P. L. P. (CoI)
National Science Foundation
3/1/06 → 9/30/27
Project: Research project
A systems based characterization of xyloglucan utilization by the human gut bacterium Segatella copri (syn. Prevotella copri)
Brantley, S. L. (PI), Stewart, W. A. W. A. (PI) & Brumer, H. (CoI)
National Science Foundation
8/1/05 → 10/31/27
Project: Research project
Workshop Proposal: Mapping a Future for Management of Low-Temperature Geochemical Data: Atlanta, GA or Charlotte, NC - February 2020
Brantley, S. L. (PI)
National Science Foundation
10/1/19 → 9/30/21
Project: Research project
EAGER SitS: Emergent Properties during Soil Formation
Brantley, S. L. (PI), Nyblade, A. A. (CoPI) & Regan, J. (CoPI)
National Science Foundation
9/15/18 → 8/31/21
Project: Research project
NRT-INFEWS: Landscape-U, Impactful partnerships among graduate students and managers for regenerative landscape design
Smithwick, E. (PI), Kaye, J. P. (CoPI), Keller, K. (CoPI), Glenna, L. L. (CoPI), Baka, J. E. (CoPI), Hunt, C. A. (CoPI), Grady, C. (CoPI) & Graefe, A. R. (CoPI)
National Science Foundation
9/1/18 → 8/31/24
Project: Research project
Collaborative Research: The fingerprint of abrupt temperature events throughout Greenland during the last glacial period
Sowers, T. A. (PI)
National Science Foundation
8/1/18 → 7/31/22
Project: Research project

Fellow of American Chemical Society
Pisupati, S. V. (Recipient), Aug 20 2018
Prize: Honorary award

College of Earth and Mineral Sciences Research Centers

Organization profile

Organization profile

Research Centers

Fingerprint

Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

Dive into details

Stephen Rand Crawford, Jr.

Brandon Robert Forsythe

Bernd Haupt

Casey Helgeson

Robert Eugene Nicholas

Xianzeng Niu

Erica Smithwick

Timothy Stapler White

AI-powered measurement verification and reporting system for agroforestry trees to estimate carbon sequestration potential

Heterogeneous Carbonate Lithium Isotope Records Across the end-Permian Mass Extinction Indicate a Highly Perturbed Lithium Cycle in the Early Triassic

Survey of U.S. Adults Reveals Simpler Graph Types Improve Interpretation of Extreme Precipitation

The INFLUX network-eddy covariance in and around an urban environment

Unlocking the benefits of transparent and reusable science for climate risk management

Analysis of transition metal content in glioblastoma reveals association between iron and survival

Building resilient urban water systems: emerging opportunities for solving long-lasting challenges

Climate change and flooding in the Susquehanna River watershed: An exploratory analysis of county hazard mitigation plans

Complex networks reveal teleconnections across cascading floods in the Yangtze River Basin

Contrasting Depth Dependencies of Plant Root Presence and Mass Across Biomes Underscore Prolific Root-Regolith Interactions

Collaborative Research: Planning: CHIRRP: Science to Advance Freshwater Ecosystem and Community Resilience in the Appalachians (SAFER Apps)

Towards regenerative landscape futures: the role of policy legacies, environmental stress, and landscape change

Belmont Forum Collaborative Research: Abandonment and rebound: Societal views on landscape- and land-use change and their impacts on water and soils (ABRESO)

Collaborative Research: Investigating Ice Sheet - Solid Earth Feedbacks in West Antarctica: Implications for Ice Sheet Evolution and Stability

Uncovering functional interactions between RNA methylation and the epigenome in hematopoietic and malignant stem cells

A systems based characterization of xyloglucan utilization by the human gut bacterium Segatella copri (syn. Prevotella copri)

Workshop Proposal: Mapping a Future for Management of Low-Temperature Geochemical Data: Atlanta, GA or Charlotte, NC - February 2020

EAGER SitS: Emergent Properties during Soil Formation

NRT-INFEWS: Landscape-U, Impactful partnerships among graduate students and managers for regenerative landscape design

Collaborative Research: The fingerprint of abrupt temperature events throughout Greenland during the last glacial period

Fellow of American Chemical Society

College of Earth and Mineral Sciences Research Centers

Organization profile

Organization profile

Research Centers

Fingerprint

Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

Profiles

Research output

Projects

Prizes