Author Archives: Laura Toran

Virtual Carbonate RCN conference

We wrapped up the virtual Carbonate RCN conference this month, with various study groups honing research questions for future work. Find out more at the RCN website!

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Meadow grass study site visit

We took a tour of meadows in the Pennypack Creek with our collaborators at the Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust and new grad student Bojan Milinic.  Bojan is interested in using geophysics to study how infiltration differs with different plantings.

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New NSF Grant on Urban Critical Zone

I joined with a team of scientists along the east coast to develop a successful proposal to study critical zone processes in urban settings.  We plan to examine how urbanization results in a shift from supply-limited transport of weathering agents … Continue reading

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Virtual Field Trip on Youtube

Dr. Jim Berglund and I produced a virtual field trip together this summer.  We interviewed well-known karst hydrologist Dr. Will White and combined the interview with drone footage of Jim’s PhD dissertation site to produce the 5 minute youtube video.  … Continue reading

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Citizen Science Data Portal

Dr. Sarah Beganskas and I are launching a Citizen Science Data Portal for our stream temperature monitoring project.  This portal allows our volunteers (and you) to see all of the data we are collecting and compare sites. Sarah has also … Continue reading

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Geophysical monitoring at stormwater basin

Our team (MS student Kyle Collins, PhD candidate Gina Pope, Dr. Jon Nyquist and myself) installed a solar powered resistivity monitoring line at a stormwater basin in Upper Moreland Township.  One of the largest basins in the region, with a … Continue reading

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Monitoring inside stormwater pipes

I found a new technique to install loggers and sample inside stormwater pipes.  I found a pipe seam wide enough to hold a meter stick, then attached the sensors to the meter stick.  It has held in place for several … Continue reading

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Geophysics plowing

We were able to get out and survey our first stormwater basin using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) to look at sediment distribution.  The GPR acted like a plow through the cattails in the basin.   We will compare the GPR data … Continue reading

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Slowly resuming field work

My graduate students and postdoc are slowly resuming field work to keep our loggers functioning and collect data while socially distancing.  We have forayed into the suburban watersheds and soon will have access to our Philadelphia stormwater basins.  It is … Continue reading

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Encyclopedia of Water article highlighted

My article on Groundwater-Surface Water Interaction was highlighted in the new edition of Encyclopedia of Water.  Free download! https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/page/book/10.1002/9781119300762/homepage/samplecontent.html?campaign=dartwol|5257352606  

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