Kenneth D. Adams

Associate Research Professor

Division of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences

Email: Ken.Adams@dri.edu

Right: Dr. Adams kayaking off the Nepali Coast of Kauai.

Education

Professional Interests

Dr. Adams' research interests lie in the fields of geomorphology and landscape dynamics. Specifically, he is interested in how different geomorphic systems, including fluvial, lacustrine, and alluvial, respond to changes in climate and active tectonic deformation. Recent research has focused on the geologic and geomorphic history of Lake Lahontan and on the isostatic rebound of this basin after the last major lake cycle. Of particular interest is the post-highstand history of lake-level fluctuations in the Lahontan Basin and how quickly this arid region responded to relatively minor climatic fluctuations. This research has important implications concerning the rates of hydrologic and landscape responses to perturbations and how climate change affected early humans in the Great Basin. Current research efforts also include investigating the dynamics and ecology of the Black Rock Playa and the recent geomorphic evolution of the Truckee and Walker rivers.

Research

Selected Publications

Adams, K.D., 1997, Late Quaternary pluvial history, isostatic rebound, and active faulting in the Lake Lahontan

basin,Nevada and California: Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nevada, Reno, 169 p.

Adams, K.D., 2003a, Age and significance of late Holocene lakes in the Carson Sink, Nevada: Quaternary

Research, v. 60, p. 294-306.

Adams, K.D., 2003b, Estimating palaeowind strength from beach deposits: Sedimentology, v. 50, p. 565-577.

Adams, K.D., 2004, Estimating palaeowind strength from beach deposits-Reply: Sedimentology, v. 51,

p. 671-673.

Adams, K.D., 2007, Late Holocene lake-level fluctuations and sedimentary environments at Walker Lake,

Nevada, USA: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 119, no. 1/2, p. 126-139.

Adams, K.D., Locke, W.W., and Rossi, R., 1992, Obsidian hydration dating of fluvially reworked sediments in

the West Yellowstone region, Montana: Quaternary Research, v. 38, p. 180-195.

Adams, K.D., and Wesnousky, S.G., 1998, Shoreline processes and the age of the Lake Lahontan

highstand in the Jessup embayment, Nevada: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 110, no. 10, p. 1318-1332.

Adams, K.D., and Wesnousky, S.G., 1999, The Lake Lahontan highstand: Age, surficial characteristics,

soil development, and regional shoreline correlation: Geomorphology, v. 30, no. 4, p. 357-392.

Adams, K.D., Wesnousky, S.G., and Bills, B.G., 1999, Isostatic rebound, active faulting, and potential geomorphic

effects in the Lake Lahontan basin, Nevada and California: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 111, no. 12, p 1739-1756.

Adams, K.D., and Minor, T.B., 2002, Historic shoreline change at Lake Tahoe from 1938 to 1998 and

its impact on sediment and nutrient loading: Journal of Coastal Research, v. 18, no. 4, p. 637-651.

Adams, K. D., and Rowe, T. G., 2005, Historic changes to the stream environment zones of the Upper

Truckee River and Trout Creek, South Lake Tahoe Area, California: Reno, Desert Research Institute Technical Report 653-1560, 42 p. (download pdf)

Bills, B.G., Adams, K.D., and Wesnousky, S.G., In press, Viscosity structure of the crust and upper mantle in

western Nevada from isostatic rebound patterns of Lake Lahontan shorelines: Journal of Geophysical Research.

Briggs, R. W., Wesnousky, S. G., and Adams, K. D., 2005, Late Pleistocene and late Holocene lake

highstands in the Pyramid Lake subbasin of Lake Lahontan, Nevada, USA: Quaternary Research, v. 64, p. 257-263.

Forney, W., Richards, L.R., Adams, K.D., Smith, J.L., Rowe, T.G., and Minor, T.B., 2001, Assessment of Land

Use Change on Water Quality and Ecosystem Health in the Lake Tahoe Basin, Nevada and California: U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 01-418, 57 p.

Pierce, K.L., Adams, K.D., and Sturchio, N.C., 1991, Geologic setting of the Corwin Springs Known Geothermal

Resources Area in and adjacent to Yellowstone National Park, in Sorey, M.S., ed., Effects of potential geothermal development in the Corwin Springs Known Geothermal Resources Area, Montana, on the thermal features of Yellowstone National Park: U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Investigations Report 91-4052, p. C1-C37.