Melisa Diaz
Assistant Professor
melisa.diaz@colorado.edu

Department: Geography

Education: B.S., University of Rochester (2014), M.S., The Ohio State University (2017), Ph.D., The Ohio State University (2020)
Teaching:  Arctic Climate, Landscapes and Water
Research: Geochemistry, Biogeochemistry, Cryosphere

Office: SEEL S238B

Honors and Distinctions

  • 2019, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Postdoctoral Scholar
  • 2019, Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), National Chapter Award for Outstanding Professional Development
  • 2017, National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship

Recent Publications:
** denotes work done in collaboration with graduate students
* denotes work done in collaboration with undergraduate students

  • Dragone, N.B., Henley, J.B., Holland-Moritz, H., Diaz, M.A., Hogg, I., Lyons, W.B., Wall, D.H., Adams, B.J., Fierer, N. (2022). Elevational constraints on the composition and genomic attributes of microbial communities in Antarctic soils. mSystems 7(1): e01330-21. https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01330-21.
  • Franco, A.L.C., Adams, B.J., Diaz, M.A., Lemoine, N.P., Dragone, N.B., Fierer, N., Lyons, W.B., Hogg, I.D., Wall, D.H. (2021). Response of Antarctic soil fauna to climate-driven changes since the Last Glacial Maximum. Global Change Biology 28: 644-653. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15940.
  • Lyons, W.B., Carey, A.E., Gardner, C.B., Welch, S.A., Smith, D.F., Szynkiewicz, A., Diaz, M.A., Croot, P., Henry, T., Flynn, R. (2021). The Geochemistry of Irish Rivers. Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies 37: 100881. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2021.100881.
  • Diaz, M.A., Corbett, L.B., Bierman, P.R., Adams, B.J., Hogg, I., Fierer, N., Wall, D.H., Lyons, W.B. (2021) Relationship between meteoric 10Be and NO3− concentrations in soils along Shackleton Glacier, Antarctica. Earth Surface Dynamics 9(5): 1363-1380. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1363-2021.
  • Fortner, S.K., Suffoletta, M.K., Vogt, L.K., Brown, A., Diaz, M.A. (2021). An Iterative Course-Based Soil Lead Research and Partnering Model to Address Systemic Racism and the Enduring Legacy of Redlining. Environmental Justice 00: 00. http://doi.org/10.1089/env.2021.0013.
  • Dragone, N.B., Diaz, M.A., Hogg, I., Lyons, W.B., Jackson, W.A., Wall, D.H., Adams, B.J., Fierer, N. (2021). Exploring the boundaries of microbial habitability in soil. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 126(5): e2020JG006052. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JG006052. Preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.08.03.234583.
  • Diaz, M.A., Jackson, W.A., Adams, B.J., Wall, D.H., Hogg, I.D., Fierer, N., Welch, S.A., Gardner, C.B., Lyons, W.B. (2021). Geochemical zones and environmental gradients for soils from the Central Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica. Biogeosciences 18: 1629-1644. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1629-2021.
  • Diaz, M.A., Li, J., Michalski, G., Adams, B.J., Wall, D.H., Hogg, I., Fierer, N., Welch, S.A., Gardner, C.B., Lyons, W.B. (2020). Stable isotopes of nitrate, sulfate, and carbonate in soils from the Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica: A record of atmospheric deposition and chemical weathering. Frontiers in Earth Science special issue: Novel Isotope Systems and Biogeochemical Cycling During Cryospheric Weathering in Polar Environments 8(341). https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00341.
  • Diaz, M.A., Welch, S.A., Sheets, J., Welch, K.A., Adams, B.J., Khan, A.L., McKnight, D.M., Cary, S.C., Lyons, W.B. (2020). Geochemistry of Aeolian Material from the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica: Insights into Dust Sources. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 547: 116460. doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116460.
  • Lyons, W.B., Foley, K.K., Carey, A.E. Diaz, M.A., Bowen, G.J., Cerling, T. (2020). The Isotopic Geochemistry of CaCO3 Encrustations in Taylor Valley, Antarctica: Implications for their Origin. Acta Geographica Slovenica 60(2): 105-119. https://doi.org/10.3986/AGS.7233.
  • Diaz, M.A., Lyons, W.B., Adams, B.J., Welch, S.A., Khan, A.L., McKnight, D.M., Cary, S.C. (2018). Major Oxide Chemistry of Mineral Dust, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica: Revisited. Proscience 5: 25-30. DOI:10.14644/dust.2018.005.
  • Diaz, M.A., Adams, B.J., Welch, K.A., Welch, S.A., Opiyo, S., Khan, A.L., McKnight, D.M., Cary, S.C., Lyons, W.B. (2018). Aeolian Material Transport and its Role in Landscape Connectivity in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface. DOI: 10.1029/2017JF004589.
  • Diaz, M.A., Yu, H., Deuerling, K.M., Wörner, G., Gardner, C.B., Harmon, R.S., Goldsmith, S.T., Carey, A.E., Lyons, W.B. (2016). The Flux of Saharan Dust to Panama and its Influence on Soil Geochemistry. Proscience 3: 38-43. DOI:10.14644/dust.2016.006.