Breadcrumb

Bio
My research focuses on interactions between hydrologic, chemical and biological processes in controlling the dynamics in aquatic ecosystems.
This research is carried out through field-scale experiments, modeling, and laboratory characterization of natural substrates. Conducts research focusing on interactions between freshwater biota, trace metals, and natural organic material in diverse freshwater environments, including lakes and streams in the Colorado Rocky Mountains and in the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica.
Main field sites are located in the Rocky Mountains and in the Transantarctic Mountains of Antarctica, and include pristine and stressed ecosystems. A co-principal investigator in the McMurdo Dry Valley LTER and in the Niwot Ridge LTER.
Develops interactions with state and local groups involved in mine drainage and watershed issues in the Rocky Mountains.
CU Connections interview "Five Questions for Diane McKnight."
Education
- PhD: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1979
Awards
- Distinguished Professor, University of Colorado System, 2021
- Robert E. Horton Medal, American Geophysical Union, 2021
- AEESP Distinguished Lecturer, Association of Environmental Engineering & Science Professors Foundation, 2019
- John Dalton Medal, European Geosciences Union, 2015
- Distinguished Research Lectureship, CU Boulder, 2015
- Hydrology Section Award, American Geophysical Union, 2014
- Elected member, National Academy of Engineering, 2012
- Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2009
- Fellow, American Geophysical Union, 2004
- Meritorious Service Award, U.S. Geological Survey, 1995
Research
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Publications
Recent publications
Comparing Properties Affecting Transport, Fate, Effects, and Response
Type: Chapter
Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines A Comparative Study of Environmental Fate, Effects, and Response Preface
Type: Chapter
Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines A Comparative Study of Environmental Fate, Effects, and Response Introduction
Type: Chapter
Ancient low-molecular-weight organic acids in permafrost fuel rapid carbon dioxide production upon thaw
Publication Date: 2015-11-10
Type: Journal Article
An overview of research from a high elevation landscape: the Niwot Ridge, Colorado Long Term Ecological Research programme
Publication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Children's book series and associated curricula support elementary education and outreach in water resources
Publication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
A slide down a slippery slope - alpine ecosystem responses to nitrogen deposition
Publication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Limnology of the Green Lakes Valley: phytoplankton ecology and dissolved organic matter biogeochemistry at a long-term ecological research site
Publication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Antarctic streams as a potential source of iron for the Southern Ocean
Publication Date: 2015-11-01
Type: Journal Article
Dissolved Organic Matter Quality in a Shallow Aquifer of Bangladesh: Implications for Arsenic Mobility
Mladenov N; Zheng Y; Simone B; Bilinski TM; McKnight DM; Nemergut D; Radloff KA; Rahman MM; Ahmed KM...
- Mladenov N
- Zheng Y
- Simone B
- Bilinski TM
- McKnight DM
- Nemergut D
- Radloff KA
- Rahman MM
- Ahmed KM
Publication Date: 2015-09-15
Type: Journal Article
The river as a chemostat: fresh perspectives on dissolved organic matter flowing down the river continuum
Creed IF; McKnight DM; Pellerin BA; Green MB; Bergamaschi BA; Aiken GR; Burns DA; Findlay SEG; Shanley JB; Striegl RG...
- Creed IF
- McKnight DM
- Pellerin BA
- Green MB
- Bergamaschi BA
- Aiken GR
- Burns DA
- Findlay SEG
- Shanley JB
- Striegl RG
Publication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Recovery of Antarctic stream epilithon from simulated scouring events
Publication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Potential for real-time understanding of coupled hydrologic and biogeochemical processes in stream ecosystems: Future integration of telemetered data with process models for glacial meltwater streams
McKnight DM; Cozzetto K; Cullis JDS; Gooseff MN; Jaros C; Koch JC; Lyons WB; Neupauer R; Wlostowski A...
- McKnight DM
- Cozzetto K
- Cullis JDS
- Gooseff MN
- Jaros C
- Koch JC
- Lyons WB
- Neupauer R
- Wlostowski A
Publication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Hydrodynamic control of benthic mats of Didymosphenia geminata at the reach scale
Publication Date: 2015-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Pressure-driven, shoreline currents in a perennially ice-covered, pro-glacial lake in Antarctica, identified from a LiCl tracer injected into a pro-glacial stream
Publication Date: 2015-04-30
Type: Journal Article
Influence of Leaching Solution and Catchment Location on the Fluorescence of Water-Soluble Organic Matter
Publication Date: 2015-04-07
Type: Journal Article
Transformations in autochthonous DOM: An Antarctic supraglacial case study
Publication Date: 2015-03-22
Type: Conference Proceeding
Life in the Main Channel: Long-Term Hydrologic Control of Microbial Mat Abundance in McMurdo Dry Valley Streams, Antarctica
Publication Date: 2015-03-01
Type: Journal Article
Fractionation of Fulvic Acid by Iron and Aluminum Oxides-Influence on Copper Toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia
Publication Date: 2014-10-21
Type: Journal Article
Abiotic and biotic factors influencing the mobility of arsenic in groundwater of a through-flow island in the Okavango Delta, Botswana
Mladenov N; Wolski P; Hettiarachchi GM; Murray-Hudson M; Enriquez H; Damaraju S; Galkaduwa MB; McKnight DM; Masamba W...
- Mladenov N
- Wolski P
- Hettiarachchi GM
- Murray-Hudson M
- Enriquez H
- Damaraju S
- Galkaduwa MB
- McKnight DM
- Masamba W
Publication Date: 2014-10-10
Type: Journal Article
Morning, noon, and night: DOM photochemistry and understanding the biogeochemical pulse of river ecosystems
Publication Date: 2014-08-10
Type: Conference Proceeding
From the litter layer to the saprolite: Chemical changes in water-soluble soil organic matter and their correlation to microbial community composition
Publication Date: 2014-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Fluorescence Indices and Their Interpretation
Type: Chapter
Diel flow pulses drive particulate organic matter transport from microbial mats in a glacial meltwater stream in the McMurdo Dry Valleys
Publication Date: 2014-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Characterization of IHSS Pony Lake fulvic acid dissolved organic matter by electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry and fluorescence spectroscopy
Publication Date: 2013-12-01
Type: Journal Article
Pages
Teaching
Current courses
- CVEN 5323: Applied Stream Ecology
Past courses
- CVEN 3434: Introduction to Applied Ecology
- CVEN 3454: Water Chemistry
- CVEN 5454: Environmental Engineering Chemistry
- CVEN 6404: Advanced Aquatic Chemistry
Current students
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