I am a Research Geologist with the US Geological Survey with expertise in Luminescence Geochronology and Radiation Dosimetry. That might sound boring but this is the best job in the whole world. I love the fact that I get to work with a wide swath of scientists--everybody from geologists to anthropologists to physicists to nuclear engineers. I work on a myriad of projects and I learn so much! You might say my other great skill in life is pretty much finding humor in everything I do and everywhere I go. Life is short, laugh a lot.
Over the past 25 years, luminescence dating has become a key tool for dating sediments of interes... more Over the past 25 years, luminescence dating has become a key tool for dating sediments of interest in paleoseismic research. The data obtained from luminescence dating has been used to determine timing of fault displacement, calculate slip rates, and estimate earthquake recurrence intervals. The flexibility of luminescence is a key complement to other chronometers such as radiocarbon or cosmogenic nuclides. Careful sampling and correct selection of sample sites exert two of the strongest controls on obtaining an accurate luminescence age. Factors such as partial bleaching and post-depositional mixing should be avoided during sampling and special measures may be needed to help correct for associated problems. Like all geochronologic techniques, context is necessary for interpreting and calculating luminescence results and this can be achieved by supplying participating labs with associated trench logs, photos, and stratigraphic locations of sample sites.
Luminescence dating provides a direct age estimate of the time of last exposure of quartz or feld... more Luminescence dating provides a direct age estimate of the time of last exposure of quartz or feldspar minerals to light or heat and has been successfully applied to deposits, rock surfaces, and fired materials in a number of archaeological and geological settings. Sampling strategies are diverse and can be customized depending on local circumstances, although all sediment samples need to include a light-safe sample and material for dose-rate determination. The accuracy and precision of luminescence dating results are directly related to the type and quality of the material sampled and sample collection methods in the field. Selection of target material for dating should include considerations of adequacy of resetting of the luminescence signal (optical and thermal bleaching), the ability to characterize the radioactive environment surrounding the sample (dose rate), and the lack of evidence for post-depositional mixing (bioturbation in soils and sediment). Sample strategies for collection of samples from sedimentary settings and fired materials are discussed. This paper should be used as a guide for luminescence sampling and is meant to provide essential background information on how to properly collect samples and on the types of materials suitable for luminescence dating. La datación por luminiscencia proporciona una estimación directa de la edad del último momento en el que el cuarzo o los minerales de feldespato se expusieron a la luz o al calor y que se ha aplicado exitosamente a depósitos, superficies rocosas y materiales expuestos al fuego en distintos contextos arqueológicos y geológicos. Las estrategias de muestreo son diversas y pueden ser individualizadas dependiendo de las circunstancias locales, aunque todas las muestras de sedimentos deben incluir una muestra segura que no haya sido expuesta a la luz y material para calcular la tasa de la dosis. La exactitud y precisión de los resultados de la datación por luminiscencia están directamente relacionadas con el tipo y la calidad de los materiales muestreados y los métodos de recolección de muestras en el campo. La elección del material de estudio para su datación debe incluir las siguientes consideraciones en torno a la idoneidad de poder reposicionar la señal de luminiscencia (blanqueador óptico y térmico), la capacidad de caracterizar el ambiente radiactivo que rodea la muestra (la tasa de la dosis) y el que no exista evidencia de una alteración posdeposicional (bioperturbación en suelos y sedimentos). Se discuten las estrategias de muestreo para la recolección de muestras de contextos sedimentarios y de materiales expuestos al fuego. Este artículo debe utilizarse como una guía para el muestreo por luminiscencia y tiene la intención de proveer información básica de cómo recolectar muestras y sobre los tipos de materiales apropiados para la datación por luminiscencia.
Special Paper 439: Late Cenozoic Drainage History of the Southwestern Great Basin and Lower Colorado River Region: Geologic and Biotic Perspectives, 2008
Detailed studies of trenches 14D and 14C on the Bow Ridge fault indicate two to three displacemen... more Detailed studies of trenches 14D and 14C on the Bow Ridge fault indicate two to three displacements and long recurrence intervals during the middle to late Quaternary. The main trace of the fault is marked by a thick (20--40 centimeters wide) subvertical shear zone coated with multiple carbonate-silica laminae and several generations of fine-grained fissure-fill debris. Exposed in the trenches
Page 1. 687 ASSESSING THE NATURAL PERFORMANCE OF FELSIC TUFFS USING THE Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd SYSTEMS--... more Page 1. 687 ASSESSING THE NATURAL PERFORMANCE OF FELSIC TUFFS USING THE Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd SYSTEMS--A STUDY OF THE ALTERED ZONE IN THE TOPOPAH SPRING MEMBER, PAINTBRUSH TUFF, YUCCA ...
Description/Abstract Understanding climate change during the expected life span of a potential hi... more Description/Abstract Understanding climate change during the expected life span of a potential high-level nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, requires estimates of future climate boundary conditions. These climate boundary conditions are governed by ...
Over the past 25 years, luminescence dating has become a key tool for dating sediments of interes... more Over the past 25 years, luminescence dating has become a key tool for dating sediments of interest in paleoseismic research. The data obtained from luminescence dating has been used to determine timing of fault displacement, calculate slip rates, and estimate earthquake recurrence intervals. The flexibility of luminescence is a key complement to other chronometers such as radiocarbon or cosmogenic nuclides. Careful sampling and correct selection of sample sites exert two of the strongest controls on obtaining an accurate luminescence age. Factors such as partial bleaching and post-depositional mixing should be avoided during sampling and special measures may be needed to help correct for associated problems. Like all geochronologic techniques, context is necessary for interpreting and calculating luminescence results and this can be achieved by supplying participating labs with associated trench logs, photos, and stratigraphic locations of sample sites.
Luminescence dating provides a direct age estimate of the time of last exposure of quartz or feld... more Luminescence dating provides a direct age estimate of the time of last exposure of quartz or feldspar minerals to light or heat and has been successfully applied to deposits, rock surfaces, and fired materials in a number of archaeological and geological settings. Sampling strategies are diverse and can be customized depending on local circumstances, although all sediment samples need to include a light-safe sample and material for dose-rate determination. The accuracy and precision of luminescence dating results are directly related to the type and quality of the material sampled and sample collection methods in the field. Selection of target material for dating should include considerations of adequacy of resetting of the luminescence signal (optical and thermal bleaching), the ability to characterize the radioactive environment surrounding the sample (dose rate), and the lack of evidence for post-depositional mixing (bioturbation in soils and sediment). Sample strategies for collection of samples from sedimentary settings and fired materials are discussed. This paper should be used as a guide for luminescence sampling and is meant to provide essential background information on how to properly collect samples and on the types of materials suitable for luminescence dating. La datación por luminiscencia proporciona una estimación directa de la edad del último momento en el que el cuarzo o los minerales de feldespato se expusieron a la luz o al calor y que se ha aplicado exitosamente a depósitos, superficies rocosas y materiales expuestos al fuego en distintos contextos arqueológicos y geológicos. Las estrategias de muestreo son diversas y pueden ser individualizadas dependiendo de las circunstancias locales, aunque todas las muestras de sedimentos deben incluir una muestra segura que no haya sido expuesta a la luz y material para calcular la tasa de la dosis. La exactitud y precisión de los resultados de la datación por luminiscencia están directamente relacionadas con el tipo y la calidad de los materiales muestreados y los métodos de recolección de muestras en el campo. La elección del material de estudio para su datación debe incluir las siguientes consideraciones en torno a la idoneidad de poder reposicionar la señal de luminiscencia (blanqueador óptico y térmico), la capacidad de caracterizar el ambiente radiactivo que rodea la muestra (la tasa de la dosis) y el que no exista evidencia de una alteración posdeposicional (bioperturbación en suelos y sedimentos). Se discuten las estrategias de muestreo para la recolección de muestras de contextos sedimentarios y de materiales expuestos al fuego. Este artículo debe utilizarse como una guía para el muestreo por luminiscencia y tiene la intención de proveer información básica de cómo recolectar muestras y sobre los tipos de materiales apropiados para la datación por luminiscencia.
Special Paper 439: Late Cenozoic Drainage History of the Southwestern Great Basin and Lower Colorado River Region: Geologic and Biotic Perspectives, 2008
Detailed studies of trenches 14D and 14C on the Bow Ridge fault indicate two to three displacemen... more Detailed studies of trenches 14D and 14C on the Bow Ridge fault indicate two to three displacements and long recurrence intervals during the middle to late Quaternary. The main trace of the fault is marked by a thick (20--40 centimeters wide) subvertical shear zone coated with multiple carbonate-silica laminae and several generations of fine-grained fissure-fill debris. Exposed in the trenches
Page 1. 687 ASSESSING THE NATURAL PERFORMANCE OF FELSIC TUFFS USING THE Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd SYSTEMS--... more Page 1. 687 ASSESSING THE NATURAL PERFORMANCE OF FELSIC TUFFS USING THE Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd SYSTEMS--A STUDY OF THE ALTERED ZONE IN THE TOPOPAH SPRING MEMBER, PAINTBRUSH TUFF, YUCCA ...
Description/Abstract Understanding climate change during the expected life span of a potential hi... more Description/Abstract Understanding climate change during the expected life span of a potential high-level nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, requires estimates of future climate boundary conditions. These climate boundary conditions are governed by ...
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Papers by Shannon Mahan
The data obtained from luminescence dating has been used to determine timing of fault displacement, calculate slip rates,
and estimate earthquake recurrence intervals. The flexibility of luminescence is a key complement to other chronometers
such as radiocarbon or cosmogenic nuclides. Careful sampling and correct selection of sample sites exert two of the strongest
controls on obtaining an accurate luminescence age. Factors such as partial bleaching and post-depositional mixing should be avoided during sampling and special measures may be needed to help correct for associated problems. Like all geochronologic techniques, context is necessary for interpreting and calculating luminescence results and this can be achieved by supplying participating labs with associated trench logs, photos, and stratigraphic locations of sample sites.
The data obtained from luminescence dating has been used to determine timing of fault displacement, calculate slip rates,
and estimate earthquake recurrence intervals. The flexibility of luminescence is a key complement to other chronometers
such as radiocarbon or cosmogenic nuclides. Careful sampling and correct selection of sample sites exert two of the strongest
controls on obtaining an accurate luminescence age. Factors such as partial bleaching and post-depositional mixing should be avoided during sampling and special measures may be needed to help correct for associated problems. Like all geochronologic techniques, context is necessary for interpreting and calculating luminescence results and this can be achieved by supplying participating labs with associated trench logs, photos, and stratigraphic locations of sample sites.