Dr.

Michelle L. Coombs

Ph.D.
Coombs pictured in 2016
TitleGeologist and Past SIC (AVO)
Affiliate Faculty (UAF)
Academic background
EducationWilliams College (BA)
University of Alaska Fairbanks (PhD)
Academic work
InstitutionsAlaska Volcano Observatory
Websitewww.usgs.gov/staff-profiles/michelle-l-coombs

Michelle Lynn Coombs is a geologist at the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO). She was the Scientist-in-Charge from 2016 to 2023.[1][2] Coombs is a fellow of the Geological Society of America.[3]

Education

Personal life

Coombs is married to USGS geologist Evan Thoms.[5][6]

Michelle is originally from Maine,[7] where Coombs is a common last name.[8][9]

Career

Coombs was the Scientist-in-Charge (SIC) of AVO from 2016 to 2023.[10] As the SIC, she was in charge of coordinating emergency responses to volcanic eruptions, and guides the process of monitoring volcanic activity in Alaska.[11] She is frequently quoted in the news as a subject-matter expert on volcanoes in and around Alaska.[12] As the SIC, she was also the main contact from the media to AVO. Dr. Matthew Haney became the new SIC of AVO in August 2023, succeeding Coombs.[13][14]

She is the second woman in AVO history to serve as the Alaskan SIC, as Terry Keith held the position from 1994–99.[15] When she became SIC in 2016, she was one of 3 women serving as a Scientist-in-Charge of a USGS-operated Volcano Observatory, but as of March 2023, she was the only one.[16]

She has worked with the AVO since 2004, before which she worked for the USGS's Volcano Hazards Program out of Menlo Park, California;[16][17] which she joined after completing her Ph.D.[7]

While Coombs was in college, she was a field assistant to Judy Fierstein. Once she began working at AVO, she became a mentee of Terry Keith and Tina Neal.[16]

Coombs was the advisor to a 2011 internship studying the 2006 eruption of Augustine Volcano.[18] She had previously co-edited a 2010 U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper on the eruption.[19]

Coombs has also been a participant of a volcanic eruptions workshop from the National Academies.[20]

Research

Coomb's main research focus is volcanology.[21] Much of her research is on volcanic geology in Alaska, but she has also published research on volcanoes in Hawaii,[22] and her doctoral dissertation was on Mount Desert Island, Maine.[23]

Coombs is an expert on the geology of the Aleutian Arc, having published extensively on it.[24]

In 2019, Coombs and a group of collaborators were awarded a NSF grant to model eruptions of Alaskan volcanoes.[25]

Affiliations

As well as currently being a fellow to the Geological Society of America (GSA), she stood on the Student Awards Committee for the American Geophysical Union (AGU) from 2011–2015.[26]

Coombs was an Associate Editor for the Bulletin of Volcanology (2013–2016), and was on the editorial board of Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2007–2018).[24] She has also served as a Steering Committee member for the Community Network for Volcanic Eruption Response (CONVERSE).[27]

References

  1. ↑ "Michelle Lynn Coombs". Loop. Frontiers Media. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Alaska Volcano Observatory". Alaska Volcano Observatory. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Fellowship: All Active and Current GSA Fellows". The Geological Society of America.
  4. ↑ Lemoine, Noelle (April 11, 2005). "Volcanic Eruptions and Magmatic Flows" (Press release). Williamstown: Office of Communications (Williams College).
  5. ↑ Jardin, Xeni (August 23, 2006). "ISS astronaut snaps photo of volcano erupting on Earth". Boing Boing. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Evan E Thoms". U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  7. 1 2 Diggles, Michael. "Peninsula Geological Society January 2003, Lecture". diggles.com (Mike Diggles). Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  8. ↑ Wigglesworth, Shelley. "Catching up with the Coombs: Family reunion set for Nov. 5". Portsmouth Herald. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Clarence "Clem" Coombs". Lewiston Sun Journal. Fryeburg. December 19, 2005. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  10. ↑ Gillies, Yvette (April 4, 2016). "New Scientist-in-Charge at the Alaska Volcano Observatory". U.S. Geological Survey (Press release). Anchorage. Retrieved April 10, 2023. USGS
  11. ↑ "15 Amazing Jobs at the Interior Department". U.S. Department of the Interior. January 6, 2017. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  12. ↑ Examples include: Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  13. ↑ Alaska Volcano Observatory, Retrieved Aug. 15, 2023.
  14. ↑ United States Geological Survey, Staff Profiles, Dr. Matt M. Haney, Retrieved Aug. 15, 2023.
  15. ↑ Klemetti, Erik (March 27, 2023). "The Changing Face of Volcanology". Discover Magazine. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  16. 1 2 3 Klemetti, Erik (March 29, 2023). "A Long Way Still to Go to Create Representative Volcanology". Discover Magazine. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Michelle Coombs". Alaska Volcano Observatory. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  18. ↑ "2011 NAGT-USGS Interns". USGS NAGT Interns. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  19. ↑ Power, John A.; Coombs, Michelle L.; Freymueller, Jeffrey T., eds. (2010). "The 2006 eruption of Augustine Volcano, Alaska". U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1769. doi:10.3133/pp1769. Smithsonian Libraries
  20. ↑ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2017). "Appendix B: Workshop Participants". Volcanic Eruptions and Their Repose, Unrest, Precursors, and Timing. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi:10.17226/24650. ISBN 978-0-309-45415-5.
  21. ↑ USGS Volcanoes (January 13, 2017). "Meet: USGS Geologist Michelle Coombs". Retrieved April 9, 2023 – via Facebook.
  22. ↑ "Hulihia Kīlauea – A Complete Change, part 1 – Teachers". National Park Service. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  23. ↑ Coombs, Michelle L. (1994). Petrology and Geochemistry of the Southern Shatter Zone, Cadillac Mountain Pluton, Mount Desert Island, Maine (PDF) (Thesis). Williams College.
  24. 1 2 "Michelle L. Coombs, Ph.D." U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  25. ↑ "NSF awards $19 million in natural hazards research grants". National Science Foundation. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  26. ↑ AGU (February 24, 2015). "Outstanding Student Paper Awards". Eos. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  27. ↑ "Welcome". Community Network for Volcanic Eruption Response (CONVERSE). [Community Reports]. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
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