Professor Carrie Lear
Professor in Earth Science
Director of Research
- learc@cardiff.ac.uk
- +44 (0)29 2087 9004
- Fax:
- +44 (0)29 2087 4326
- 1.72, Main Building
- Media commentator
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Overview
I am Professor in Earth Science, and Director of Research in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences.
I am an active supporter of EDI in academia and the geosciences.
My research interests are:
- Past climate change
- Geochemical proxies
- Long-term ice sheet stability
- Carbon cycle feedbacks
- Cenozoic palaeoceanography
Biography
- Director of Research, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences (2022-)
- Head of Centre for Resilience and Environmental Change (2015-2021)
- Member of REF2021 Sub-panel 7
- Founder and Co-Chair of UK Paleoclimate Society (2017-)
- Professor of Earth Sciences, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University (2016-Present)
- Reader in Earth Sciences, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University (2013 – 2016)
- Senior Lecturer in Earth Sciences, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University (2009-2013)
- Lecturer in Earth Sciences, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University (2004-2009)
- Postdoctoral Research Associate, Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, NJ, USA (2001-2004)
- PhD – Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, UK (2000)
- BA (first class hons) Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, UK (1997)
Honours and awards
Bigsby Medal, Geological Society of London (2017)
Philip Leverhulme Prize (2005)
Bateman Scholarship (Gonville and Caius College, University of Cambridge)
Geology Prize and Scholarship (University of Oxford) (1994-1997)
Professional memberships
President of the UK Paleoclimate Society
Publications
2022
- Zammit, R., Lear, C. H., Samankassou, E., Lourens, L. J., Micallef, A., Pearson, P. N. and Bialik, O. M. 2022. Early Miocene intensification of the North African hydrological cycle: multi‐proxy evidence from the shelf carbonates of Malta. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 37(9), article number: e2022PA004414. (10.1029/2022pa004414)
- Pearson, P. N., John, E., Wade, B. S., D'haenens, S. and Lear, C. H. 2022. Spine-like structures in Paleogene muricate planktonic foraminifera. Journal of Micropalaeontology 41(2), pp. 107-127. (10.5194/jm-41-107-2022)
- Staudigel, P. T., John, E. H., Buse, B. and Lear, C. H. 2022. Apparent preservation of primary foraminiferal Mg/Ca ratios and Mg-banding in recrystallized foraminifera. Geology 50(7), pp. 760-764. (10.1130/G49984.1)
2021
- Bradshaw, C. D., Langebroek, P. M., Lear, C. H., Lunt, D. J., Coxall, H. K., Sosdian, S. M. and de Boer, A. M. 2021. Hydrological impact of Middle Miocene Antarctic ice-free areas coupled to deep ocean temperatures. Nature Geoscience 14, pp. 429-436. (10.1038/s41561-021-00745-w)
- Burls, N. J. et al. 2021. Simulating Miocene warmth: insights from an opportunistic multi-model ensemble (MioMIP1). Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 36(5), article number: e2020PA004054. (10.1029/2020PA004054)
- Steinthorsdottir, M. et al. 2021. The Miocene: the future of the past. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 36(4), article number: e2020PA004037. (10.1029/2020PA004037)
- Nairn, M. G., Lear, C. H., Sosdian, S. M., Bailey, T. R. and Beavington-Penney, S. 2021. Tropical sea surface temperatures following the middle Miocene climate transition from laser-ablation ICP-MS analysis of glassy foraminifera. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 36(3), article number: e2020PA004165. (10.1029/2020PA004165)
- Hutchinson, D. K. et al. 2021. The Eocene-Oligocene transition: a review of marine and terrestrial proxy data, models and model-data comparisons. Climate of the Past 17(1), pp. 269-315. (10.5194/cp-17-269-2021)
- Lunt, D. J. et al. 2021. DeepMIP: model intercomparison of early eocene climatic optimum (EECO) large-scale climate features and comparison with proxy data. Climate of the Past 17, pp. 203-237. (10.5194/cp-17-203-2021)
2020
- Sosdian, S. M. and Lear, C. H. 2020. Initiation of the western Pacific warm pool at the middle Miocene climate transition?. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 35(12), article number: e2020PA003920. (10.1029/2020PA003920)
- Lear, C. H. et al. 2020. Geological Society of London Scientific Statement: what the geological record tells us about our present and future climate. Journal of the Geological Society 178(1), article number: jgs2020-239. (10.1144/jgs2020-239)
- Modestou, S. E., Leutert, T. J., Fernandez, A., Lear, C. H. and Meckler, A. N. 2020. Warm middle Miocene Indian Ocean bottom water temperatures: comparison of clumped isotope and Mg/Ca based estimates. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 35(11), article number: e2020PA003927. (10.1029/2020PA003927)
- Detlef, H. et al. 2020. Late quaternary sea-ice and sedimentary redox conditions in the eastern Bering Sea – implications for ventilation of the mid-depth North Pacific and an Atlantic-Pacific seesaw mechanism. Quaternary Science Reviews 248, article number: 106549. (10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106549)
- Simon, M. H. et al. 2020. Sequential extraction procedure to obtain the composition of terrigenous detritus in marine sediments. MethodsX 7, article number: 100888. (10.1016/j.mex.2020.100888)
- Simon, M. H. et al. 2020. Development of a protocol to obtain the composition of terrigenous detritus in marine sediments -a pilot study from International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 361. Chemical Geology 535, article number: 119449. (10.1016/j.chemgeo.2019.119449)
- Sosdian, S. M., Babila, T. L., Greenop, R., Foster, G. L. and Lear, C. H. 2020. Ocean carbon storage across the middle Miocene: A new interpretation for the Monterey Event. Nature Communications 11, article number: 134. (10.1038/s41467-019-13792-0)
- Detlef, H., Sosdian, S. M., Kender, S., Lear, C. H. and Hall, I. R. 2020. Multi-elemental composition of authigenic carbonates in benthic foraminifera from the eastern Bering Sea continental margin (International Ocean Discovery Program Site U1343). Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 268, pp. 1-21. (10.1016/j.gca.2019.09.025)
- Bowen, G. J., Fisher-Femal, B., Reichart, G., Sluijs, A. and Lear, C. H. 2020. Joint inversion of proxy system models to reconstruct paleoenvironmental time series from heterogeneous data. Climate of the Past 16, pp. 65-78. (10.5194/cp-16-65-2020)
- Edgar, K. M., Bohaty, S. M., Coxall, H. K., Bown, P. R., Batenburg, S. J., Lear, C. H. and Pearson, P. N. 2020. New composite bio- and isotope stratigraphies spanning the Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum at tropical ODP Site 865 in the Pacific Ocean. Journal of Micropalaeontology 39, pp. 117-138. (10.5194/jm-39-117-2020)
2019
- Hollis, C. J. et al. 2019. The DeepMIP contribution to PMIP4: methodologies for selection, compilation and analysis of latest Paleocene and early Eocene climate proxy data, incorporating version 0.1 of the DeepMIP database. Geoscientific Model Development 12(7), pp. 3149-3206. (10.5194/gmd-12-3149-2019)
- Greenop, R., Sosdian, S. M., Henehan, M. J., Wilson, P. A., Lear, C. H. and Foster, G. L. 2019. Orbital forcing, ice-volume and CO2 across the Oligocene-Miocene Transition. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 34(3), pp. 316-328. (10.1029/2018PA003420)
2018
- Sosdian, S. M., Greenop, R., Hain, M. H., Foster, G. L., Pearson, P. N. and Lear, C. H. 2018. Constraining the evolution of Neogene ocean carbonate chemistry using the boron isotope pH proxy. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 498, pp. 362-376. (10.1016/j.epsl.2018.06.017)
- Barrientos, N. et al. 2018. Arctic Ocean benthic foraminifera Mg/Ca ratios and global Mg/Ca-temperature calibrations: New constraints at low temperatures. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 236, pp. 240-259. (10.1016/j.gca.2018.02.036)
- Evans, D., Badger, M., Foster, G., Henehan, M., Lear, C. and Zachos, J. 2018. No substantial long-term bias in the Cenozoic benthic foraminifera oxygen-isotope record. Nature Communications 9, article number: 2875. (10.1038/s41467-018-05303-4)
- Gray, W. R. et al. 2018. Deglacial upwelling, productivity and CO2 outgassing in the North Pacific Ocean. Nature Geoscience 11, pp. 340-344. (10.1038/s41561-018-0108-6)
- Diester-Haass, L., Billups, K. and Lear, C. 2018. Productivity changes across the mid-Pleistocene climate transition. Earth-Science Reviews 179, pp. 372-391. (10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.02.016)
- Coxall, H. K. et al. 2018. Export of nutrient rich Northern Component Water preceded early Oligocene Antarctic glaciation. Nature Geoscience 11, pp. 190-196. (10.1038/s41561-018-0069-9)
- Detlef, H. et al. 2018. Sea ice dynamics across the Mid-Pleistocene transition in the Bering Sea. Nature Communications 9, article number: 941. (10.1038/s41467-018-02845-5)
- Ladant, J., Donnadieu, Y., Bopp, L., Lear, C. and Wilson, P. A. 2018. Meridional contrasts in productivity changes driven by the opening of Drake Passage. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology 33(3), pp. 302-317. (10.1002/2017PA003211)
2017
- Hasenfratz, A. et al. 2017. Mg/Ca-temperature calibration for the benthic foraminifera Melonis barleeanum and Melonis pompilioides. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 217, pp. 365-383. (10.1016/j.gca.2017.08.038)
- Greenop, R. et al. 2017. A record of Neogene seawater δ11B reconstructed from paired δ11B analyses on benthic and planktic foraminifera. Climate of the Past 13, pp. 149-170. (10.5194/cp-13-149-2017)
- Lunt, D. J. et al. 2017. The DeepMIP contribution to PMIP4: experimental design for model simulations of the EECO, PETM, and pre-PETM (version 1.0). Geoscientific Model Development 10(2), pp. 889-901. (10.5194/gmd-10-889-2017)
2016
- Lear, C. H., Billups, K., Rickaby, R. E. M., Diester-Haass, L., Mawbey, E. M. and Sosdian, S. M. 2016. Breathing more deeply: Deep ocean carbon storage during the mid-Pleistocene climate transition. Geology 44(12), pp. 1035-1038. (10.1130/G38636.1)
- Lear, C. H. and Lunt, D. 2016. How Antarctica got its ice. Science 352, pp. 34-35. (10.1126/science.aad6284)
2015
- Lear, C. H. et al. 2015. Neogene ice volume and ocean temperatures: Insights from infaunal foraminiferal Mg/Ca paleothermometry. Paleoceanography 30(11), pp. 1437 -1454. (10.1002/2015PA002833)
- Kennedy, A., Farnsworth, A., Lunt, D., Lear, C. H. and Markwick, P. 2015. Atmospheric and oceanic impacts of Antarctic glaciation across the Eocene–Oligocene transition. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences 373(2054), article number: 20140419. (10.1098/rsta.2014.0419)
- Mitchell, N., Simmons, H. and Lear, C. H. 2015. Modern and ancient hiatuses in the pelagic caps of Pacific guyots and seamounts and internal tides. Geosphere 11(5), pp. 1590-1606. (10.1130/GES00999.1)
- Butler, S., Bailey, T., Lear, C. H., Curry, G., Cherns, L. and McDonald, I. 2015. The Mg/Ca–temperature relationship in brachiopod shells: Calibrating a potential palaeoseasonality proxy. Chemical Geology 397, pp. 106-117. (10.1016/j.chemgeo.2015.01.009)
2014
- Greenop, R., Foster, G. L., Wilson, P. A. and Lear, C. H. 2014. Middle Miocene climate instability associated with high-amplitude CO2 variability. Paleoceanography 29(9), pp. 845-853. (10.1002/2014PA002653)
- Mudelsee, M., Bickert, T., Lear, C. H. and lohmann, G. 2014. Cenozoic climate changes: A review based on time series analysis of marine benthic δ18O records. Reviews of Geophysics -Richmond Virginia then Washington- 52(3), pp. 333-374., article number: 2013RG000440. (10.1002/2013RG000440)
2013
- Badger, M. P., Lear, C. H., Pancost, R. D., Foster, G. L., Bailey, T., Leng, M. J. and Abels, H. A. 2013. CO2 drawdown following the middle Miocene expansion of the Antarctic ice sheet. Paleoceanography 28(1), pp. 42-53. (10.1002/palo.20015)
- Mawbey, E. M. and Lear, C. H. 2013. Carbon cycle feedbacks during the Oligocene-Miocene transient glaciation. Geology 41(9), pp. 963-966. (10.1130/G34422.1)
2012
- Sosdian, S., Lear, C. H., Tao, K., Grossman, E., O'Dea, A. and Rosenthal, Y. 2012. Cenozoic seawater Sr/Ca evolution. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 13(10), article number: Q10014. (10.1029/2012GC004240)
- Foster, G. L., Lear, C. H. and Rae, J. W. B. 2012. The evolution of pCO2, ice volume and climate during the middle Miocene. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 341-44, pp. 243-254. (10.1016/j.epsl.2012.06.007)
- Gasson, E., Siddall, M., Lunt, D. J., Rackham, O. J. L., Lear, C. H. and Pollard, D. 2012. Exploring uncertainties in the relationship between temperature, ice volume, and sea level over the past 50 million years. Reviews of Geophysics 50(1), article number: RG1005. (10.1029/2011RG000358)
2010
- Lear, C. H., Mawbey, E. M. and Rosenthal, Y. 2010. Cenozoic benthic foraminiferal Mg/Ca and Li/Ca records: toward unlocking temperatures and saturation states. Paleoceanography 25(4), article number: PA4215. (10.1029/2009PA001880)
2008
- Gentry, D. K., Sosdian, S., Grossman, E. L., Rosenthal, Y., Hicks, D. and Lear, C. H. 2008. Stable isotope and Sr/Ca profiles from the marine gastropod Conus ermineus: testing a multiproxy approach for inferring paleotemperature and paleosalinity. Palaios 23(4), pp. 195-209. (10.2110/palo.2006.p06-112r)
- Lear, C. H., Bailey, T. R., Pearson, P. N., Coxall, H. K. and Rosenthal, Y. 2008. Cooling and ice growth across the Eocene-Oligocene transition. Geology 36(3), pp. 251-254. (10.1130/G24584A.1)
- Burgess, C. E., Pearson, P. N., Lear, C. H., Morgans, H. E. G., Handley, L., Pancost, R. D. and Schouten, S. 2008. Middle Eocene climate cyclicity in the southern Pacific: implications for global ice volume. Geology 36(8), pp. 651-654. (10.1130/G24762A.1)
- Pearson, P. N., McMillan, I. K., Wade, B. S., Jones, T. D., Coxall, H. K., Bown, P. R. and Lear, C. H. 2008. Extinction and environmental change across the Eocene-Oligocene boundary in Tanzania. Geology 36(2), pp. 179-182. (10.1130/G24308A.1)
- Dunkley Jones, T., Bown, P. R., Pearson, P. N., Wade, B. S., Coxall, H. K. and Lear, C. H. 2008. Major shifts in calcareous phytoplankton assemblages through the Eocene-Oligocene transition of Tanzania and their implications for low-latitude primary production. Paleoceanography 23(4), article number: PA4204. (10.1029/2008PA001640)
- DeConto, R. M., Pollard, D., Wilson, P. A., Pälike, H., Lear, C. H. and Pagani, M. 2008. Thresholds for Cenozoic bipolar glaciation. Nature 455(7213), pp. 652-656. (10.1038/nature07337)
2006
- Lear, C. H. and Rosenthal, Y. 2006. Benthic foraminiferal Li/Ca: insights into Cenozoic seawater carbonate saturation state. Geology 34(11), pp. 985-988. (10.1130/G22792A.1)
- Rosenthal, Y., Lear, C. H., Oppo, D. W. and Linsley, B. K. 2006. Temperature and carbonate ion effects on Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca ratios in benthic foraminifera: Aragonitic species Hoeglundina elegans. Paleoceanography 21(1), article number: PA1007. (10.1029/2005PA001158)
- Sosdian, S., Gentry, D. K., Lear, C. H., Grossman, E. L., Hicks, D. and Rosenthal, Y. 2006. Strontium to calcium ratios in the marine gastropod Conus ermineus: Growth rate effects and temperature calibration. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 7(11), article number: Q11023. (10.1029/2005GC001233)
- Andreasen, D. H., Sosdian, S., Perron-Cashman, S., Lear, C. H., deGaridel-Thoron, T., Field, P. and Rosenthal, Y. 2006. Fidelity of radially viewed ICP-OES and magnetic-sector ICP-MS measurement of Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca ratios in marine biogenic carbonates: Are they trustworthy together?. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 7(10), article number: Q10P18. (10.1029/2005GC001124)
- Bailey, T. R. and Lear, C. H. 2006. Testing the effect of carbonate saturation on the Sr/Ca of biogenic aragonite: A case study from the River Ehen, Cumbria, UK. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 7(3), article number: Q03019. (10.1029/2005GC001084)
- Palike, H. et al. 2006. The Heartbeat of the Oligocene Climate System. Science 314(5807), pp. 1894-1898. (10.1126/science.1133822)
2005
- Coxall, H. K., Wilson, P. A., Pälike, H., Lear, C. H. and Backman, J. 2005. Rapid stepwise onset of Antarctic glaciation and deeper calcite compensation in the Pacific. Nature 433(7021), pp. 53-57. (10.1038/nature03135)
2004
- Lear, C. H., Rosenthal, Y., Coxall, H. K. and Wilson, P. A. 2004. Late Eocene to early Miocene ice sheet dynamics and the global carbon cycle. Paleoceanography 19(4), pp. 1-11. (10.1029/2004PA001039)
- Rosenthal, Y. et al. 2004. Interlaboratory comparison study of Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca measurements in planktonic foraminifera for paleoceanographic research. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 5(4), article number: Q04D09. (10.1029/2003GC000650)
2003
- Lear, C. H., Elderfield, H. and Wilson, P. A. 2003. A Cenozoic seawater Sr/Ca record from benthic foraminiferal calcite and its application in determining global weathering fluxes. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 208(1-2), pp. 69-84. (10.1016/S0012-821X(02)01156-1)
- Lear, C. H., Rosenthal, Y. and Wright, J. D. 2003. The closing of a seaway: ocean water masses and global climate change. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 210(3-4), pp. 425-436. (10.1016/S0012-821X(03)00164-X)
2002
- Lear, C. H., Rosenthal, Y. and Slowey, N. 2002. Benthic foraminiferal Mg/Ca-paleothermometry: a revised core-top calibration. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta 66(19), pp. 3375-3387. (10.1016/S0016-7037(02)00941-9)
2000
- Lear, C. H., Elderfield, H. and Wilson, P. A. 2000. Cenozoic Deep-Sea Temperatures and Global Ice Volumes from Mg/Ca in Benthic Foraminiferal Calcite. Science 287(5451), pp. 269-272. (10.1126/science.287.5451.269)
Teaching
Year 1:
I contribute to the World of Dynamic Environments module, which uses case studies to investigate Earth Surface Processes
I contribute to the Earth Materials module, teaching students how to describe and identify sedimentary rocks in hand specimen and thin section, and understand their process of formation.
I lead the Pembrokeshire residential field course, teaching students a range of geological field skills.
I contribute to several day field courses (e.g., Glamorgan Heritage Coast, Barry Isalnd, Rudry Common)
Year 3:
I lead the research-led module Past Climates: Science into Society
I supervise Geology Dissertations.
Year 4:
I supervise MSci Research Dissertation Projects.
I use the geochemistry of carbonate fossils as a window to past climatic change. For example, I use the Mg/Ca ratio of microscopic oceanic fossils called foraminifera to reconstruct past ocean temperatures, and their boron isotope ratios to reconstruct past changes in the carbon cycle and pCO2. Most of these fossil samples have been drilled from deep-sea sediments by the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, and I have participated in several ocean coring expeditions. The overarching aim of my research is to understand feedbacks in the climate system and to constrain the long-term sensitivity of continental ice sheets to changing environmental conditions, including CO2.
Supervision
Paleoclimate and Paleoceanography
Geochemical Proxies
Current supervision
Past projects
I have enjoyed working with some wonderful students, who have completed successful PhDs:
Emanuela Piga (Co-supervisor)
Michael Nairn (Primary supervisor)
Amy Sparkes (Primary supervisor)
Natalia Barrientos (Co-supervisor)
Stephanie Bates (Co-supervisor)
Sam Bradley (Primary supervisor)
Scott Butler (Primary supervisor)
Peter Bloxsom (Primary supervisor)
Elaine Mawbey (Primary supervisor)
Heather Birch (Co-supervisor)
Marcus Badger (Primary supervisor)
Catherine Burgess (Co-supervisor)
Impact
I am committed to supporting EDI in academia, and as a part of this, am also actively engaged in outreach and engagement activities. Some examples in these areas are:
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Member of School’s Athena Swan Panel, producing successful application for Bronze award (2016)
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Member of School EDI Committee
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Lead of School URGE Pod (Unlearning Racism in Geoscience) (2021):
https://urgeoscience.org/pods/cardiff-earth-and-environmental-sciences/
- 2021 onwards: New collaboration with the Grangetown Community Gateway project. Specific events include a stall at the Grangetown market, about the history of Grangetown and Geology, and activities with the Grangetown Youth Forum.
2021: Keynote speaker at BGS BUFI Science Festival, with a focus on EDI in Geosciences
2020: Daniell Lecture, Kings College London https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/daniell-lecture-goes-online-for-2020
2020 Featured in AL LARGO by Anna Marziano, this film won the special jury award in the documentary section of the Torino Film Festival
2019 Climate Change Schools Workshop with First Campus and National Museum Wales
2019 Three public lectures hosted by Geological Society of London
2018 Public Lecture hosted by CoPSE, Cardiff University
2016-18 Led Primary School events during NSEW
2017-18 Talks to Geologist Association and Oxford Geology Group
2017 BBC Radio Wales climate science interview
2017 Speaker at Cardiff’s Pint of Science (pintofscience.co.uk)
2016 Contributor to BBC Radio 4’s Today Program
2016 Contributor to BBC Radio Wales Good Morning Program
2016 People Like Me workshops: St Teilo’s & Cardiff High Schools, Cardiff
2016 Speaker for Cardiff Scientific Society
2015 Speaker at Hay Literary Festival
2015 Speaker at Soapbox Science Event, Swansea (soapboxscience.org)
2013 Guest on “In Our Time” with Melvyn Bragg
2013 Lectures to 300 GCSE and 150 A’ Level students, Pembrokeshire
2013 Public Lecture in ‘Dangerous Earth’ Lecture Series, Cardiff University
2012 Science-Art communication event at Chapter Arts Centre (BSA)
2010 Advisor for “Atmosphere” exhibition, Science Museum, London
2008 BBC Radio Wales interview and newspaper articles on research
2007-8 Exploring Our World Research Exhibition in National Museum Wales
2007 The Floating Classroom in Cardiff Bay: funded by RCUK.
