Prof. Dr. James Kirchner
- Personal Homepage
|
|
| Organisational unit: |
Mountain Hydrology and Mass Movements
|
| Phone: |
+41 44 7392 655
|
| Fax: |
+41 44 7392 215 |
| Room: |
Bi LG E 14 |
| E-Mail: |
|
| Address: |
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL
Zürcherstrasse 111
8903 Birmensdorf
|
|
|
I want WSL to be internationally recognized as a center of excellence in environmental research, and also to translate science into practice, in ways that improve the environment and quality of life in Switzerland.
|
Research interests
Hydrology, geochemistry, geomorphology, evolutionary ecology, paleobiology.
James Kirchner's s recent research has focused on developing simple, tractable mathematical models and time-series analysis methods for understanding the behaviour of complex environmental systems.
WSL Director
On August 1, 2007 James Kirchner became director of WSL. He was attracted by the wide range of research opportunities, by WSL's commitment to translating science into practice, and by the prospect of living and working close to the Swiss Alps.
Professor at ETH Zürich: Physics of Environmental Systems
Physics of Environmental Systems in the Department of Environmental Sciences of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, Switzerland, explores complex environmental systems seeking to answer questions such as: How does rainfall become runoff? How is the chemistry of natural waters shaped by subsurface transport and mixing, by chemical reactions with soils and rocks, and by biological processes? What processes control rates and patterns of physical erosion and chemical weathering? And how do they, in turn, regulate the topographic evolution of mountains and valleys, as well as the physical and chemical environment in which we live? Group members investigate connections between terrestrial and aquatic environments, and linkages between physical, chemical, and biological processes. The research work typically combines field observations, mathematical models, and novel analyses of environmental data. >> more
Teaching Activities
James Kirchner has taught courses in water resources, catchment hydrology, geochemistry, geomorphology, and analysis of environmental data. He currently supervises several PhD students conducting their dissertation research at WSL.
Formerly at Berkeley
James Kirchner received his PhD from the Energy and Resources Group at the University
of California, Berkeley, in 1990. Following postdoctoral work at Caltech, he returned to Berkeley as an assistant professor. He was promoted to full professor in 2002, was named the Goldman Distinguished Professor for the Physical Sciences in 2003, and also served as the director of Berkeley‘s Central
Sierra Field Research Stations. In 2008 he was named as a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union.
Recent Publications
- Perron, J.T.; J.W. Kirchner; W.E. Dietrich: Formation of evenly spaced ridges and valleys, Nature, 460, 502-505, 2009.
- Godsey, S.E.; J.W. Kirchner; D.W. Clow: Concentration-discharge relationships reflect chemostatic characteristics of US catchments, Hydrological Processes, 23, 1844-1864, 2009.
- Kirchner, J.W.: Catchments as simple dynamical systems: catchment characterization, rainfall-runoff modeling, and doing hydrology backward, Water Resources Research, 45, W02429, 2009.
- Kirchner, J.W.: Herausforderungen für Forstwirtschaft und Waldforschung im 21. Jahrhundert (Challenges for silviculture and forest research in the 21st Century), Schweizerisches Zeitschrift für Forstwesen (Swiss Journal of Forestry), 159, 224-227, 2008.
- Ferrier, K.L.; J.W. Kirchner: Effects of physical erosion on chemical denudation rates: A numerical modeling study of soil-mantled hillslopes, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 272, 591–599, 2008
-
-
