Research @ waterSHED Lab
Explore some of our ongoing and recently finished projects below
Really big landslides and hazards cascades
Massive rock avalanches are becoming increasingly frequent due to glacier debuttressing of oversteppened valley walls, and thaw of alpine permafrost. In other words, they are becoming more common as a result of climate change. Sometimes these can trigger a domino effect of secondary or tertiary geohazards, such as damming a river, which impounds a hazardous lake, or triggering a tsunami.
Publications
Sattar et al. 2025. . Science, 387:6740. doi: 10.1126/science.ads2659
Dunham et al. 2024. . Seismica. 3(2).
Byers et al. 2024. l. The Cryosphere, 18(2): 711-717.
Nouri et al. 2023. . Natural Hazards, 118:1117-1136.
Smith et al. 2023. . Geomorphology. 425: 108591.
Westoby et al. 2023. . Geology, 51(10):924-928.
Dunham et al. 2022. . Geophysical Research Letters, 49, e2022GL098582.
Geertsema et al. 2022. . Geophysical Research Letters, 49: e2021GL096716
Van Wyk de Vries et al. Accepted. . Natural Hazards and Earth System Science, 22, 3309-3327
Shugar et al. 2021. . Science, 373:300-306.
Bloom et al. 2020. . Geomorphology 353, 107029.
Brideau et al. 2019. . Landslides 16 (10), 1823-1840
Byers et al. 2019. . Landslides 16 (3), 533-549
Kirschbaum et al. 2019. . Frontiers in Earth Science 7, 197
Higman et al. 2018. . Scientific Reports 8 (1), 12993
Dufresne et al. 2018. . Sedimentary Geology 364, 302-318
Haeussler et al. 2018. . J Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 123 (10), 2443-2463
Kargel et al. 2016. . Science 351 (6269), aac8353
Deline et al. 2014. . In: Landslide Hazards Risks and Disasters, 263–319, Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Shugar et al. 2013. . Landslide Science and Practice, 321-326.
Shugar et al. 2012. The response of Black Rapids Glacier, Alaska, to the Denali earthquake rock avalanches J Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 117 (F1)
Shugar & Clague. 2011. . Sedimentology 58 (7), 1762-1783
Glacial lake evolution
We are working to understand how glacier lakes are evolving in space and time. These often ephemeral lakes present acute hazards to populations and infrastructure downstream.
Publications
Sattar et al. 2025. . Science, 387:6740. doi: 10.1126/science.ads2659
Wood et al. 2024. . Geophysical Research Letters, 51(7): e2023GL105578.
Zhang et al. 2024. . Nature Reviews Earth & Environment 5: 447-462.
Agarwal et al. 2023. . Science of the Total Environment, 898: 165598.
Lesi et al. 2022. . Earth System Science Data. 14: 5489-5512.
Geertsema et al. 2022. Geophysical Research Letters, 49: e2021GL096716.
Li et al. 2022. . Nature Geoscience.
Sattar et al. 2021. . J. Hydrol., 598, 126208.
Shugar et al. 2020. . Nature Climate Change 10, 939-945.
Watson et al. 2020. . Frontiers in Earth Sciences 7, 342.
Byers et al. 2018. . Landslides 16 (3), 533-549
Schiassi et al. 2019. . Frontiers in Earth Science 7, 267
Kirschbaum et al. 2019. . Frontiers in Earth Science 7, 197
Shugar et al. 2018. . Quaternary Science Reviews 194, 116-127
Haritashya et al. 2018. . Remote Sensing 10 (5), 798
Harrison et al. 2018. . The Cryosphere 12
Kargel et al. 2016. . Science 351 (6269), aac8353
Capps et al. 2010. . J Glaciology 56 (199), 861-870
Quaternary environmental change
The landscapes of western North America have undergone substantial change over the late Quaternary, including marked variations to relative sea levels, glacier extent, etc. We use a combination of field mapping, remote sensing, and archival research to unravel the landscape changes over the past ~20,000 years.
Publications
Fathian et al. 2026. Quaternary Science Reviews. 375: 109752.
Harrison et al. 2025. . The Cryosphere (invited perspective article). 19: 4113-4124.
Clague & Shugar. 2023. . Quaternary. 6:1.
Eamer et al. 2018. Boreas 47 (3), 738-753
Harrison et al. 2018. . The Cryosphere 12
Shugar et al. 2018. . Quaternary Science Reviews 194, 116-127
Shugar et al. 2017. . J Maps, 1-12
Shugar et al. 2017. . Nature Geoscience 10 (5), 370
Eamer et al. 2017.A glacial readvance during retreat of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, British Columbia central coast. Quaternary Research 87 (3), 468-481
Neudorf et al. 2015. . Quaternary Geochronology 30, 275-281
Shugar et al. 2014. . Quaternary Science Reviews 97, 170-192
McLaren et al. 2014. . Quaternary Science Reviews 97, 148-169
Shugar et al. 2010. . J Glaciology 56 (198), 625-634
NASA Earth Observatory
Other research
I have conducted research on a variety of other topics, including process fluvial and aeolian sediment transport, ground ice in permafrost, and medicine cabinet contents.
Publications
Das et al. 2025. . IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing. 18: 26,338-26,354.
Bailey et al. 2025. . Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface. 130
Cooke et al. 2023. . Environmental Reviews. 31:122-140.
Byers et al. 2022. . Mountain Research and Development, 42(2):A12-22.
Fathian et al. 2022. Source characteristics of the Fin doublet earthquake of 14 November 2021 (Mw 6.2 and Mw 6.3) utilizing InSAR. IEEE IGARSS. 4pp.
Emmer, A., Cook, S.J., Frey, H., and Shugar, D.H. 2021. . Frontiers Earth Sci., 9.
Kargel, Upadhyay, Maxwell, Ramos, Harrison, Shugar, and Haritashya 2021. . Georgetown J. of Intl. Affairs.
Shugar, Kane. 2019. . Nature 568:316
Eamer*, Shugar, Walker, Lian, Neudorf. 2017. . J Sedimentary Research 87 (1), 1-11
Phillips, Burn, Wolfe, Morse, Gaanderse, O’Neill, Shugar, Gruber. 2015. Improving water content description of ice-rich permafrost soils. Proceedings GeoQuébec 68
Shugar. 2014. Bathymetric and geophysical surveys of the southern end of Kluane Lake, Yukon. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 2013, MacFarlane, Nordling, Sack (eds.), Yukon Geological Survey, p. 221-231.
Walker, Shugar. 2013. . Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 38 (14), 1642-1654
Shugar, Kostaschuk, Best, Parsons, Lane, Orfeo, ...2010. . Sedimentology 57 (1), 252-272
Kostaschuk, Shugar, Best, Parsons, Lane, Hardy, Orfeo. 2009. . Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 34 (12), 1605-1611
Kostaschuk, Shugar, Best, Parsons, Lane, Hardy, ...2008. . Marine Sand-wave and River Dune Dynamics III. University of Leeds, UK, 197-201
Shugar, Kostaschuk, Ashmore, Desloges, Burge. 2007. In situ jet-testing of the erosional resistance of cohesive streambeds Canadian J Civil Engineering 34 (9), 1192-1195
Parsons, Best, Lane, Hardy, Kostaschuk, Shugar, ...2006. . River Flow 2006, vols. 1 and 2, 997-1004
Interested in finding out more?
Find information about the team and our facilities below