George Swann

Contact

• workRoom A17 School of Geography
  University Park
  Nottingham
  NG7 2RD
  UK
• work0115 84 66768
• George.Swann@nottingham.ac.uk

Biography

George is an isotope geochemist and palaeoclimatologist working on reconstructing past environmental changes over the last three million years from marine and lake sediment cores. In particular his research is focused towards:

• Developing and applying diatom isotopes (δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O and δ³⁰Si) in environmental reconstructions;
• Investigating Quaternary changes in meltwater influx and role of the biological pump in CO₂ sequestration in high latitude marine regions, including the Bering Sea and North Atlantic, North Pacific and Southern Oceans;
• Reconstructing Pliocene palaeoceanography during the onset of major Northern Hemisphere Glaciation;
• Reconstructing the Quaternary/Pliocene climatic and environmental history of lacustrine systems in Siberia.

Research Summary

Current Research Grants

• NERC Standard Grant (2012-2015): "Silicon isotope records of recent environmental change and anthropogenic pollution from Lake Baikal, Siberia" NE/J00829X/1 (PI with Dr. Suzanne McGowan [Nottingham], Dr Gary Priestnall [Nottingham], Dr. Anson Mackay [UCL], Dr. Matt Horstwood [NIGL] and Prof. Melanie Leng [NIGL]).
• NERC Isotope Geosciences Facilities Steering Committee (2011-2012): "Silicon isotope records of nutrient input to the Antarctic coastal margin" IP-1234-0511 (PI with Dr. Jenny Pike [University of Cardiff], Prof. Melanie Leng [NIGL] and Dr. Andrea Snelling [NIGL]).
• NERC IODP Small Grant (2011-2012): "Being Sea diatom isotope records during the onset of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation" NE/I005889/1 (PI with Dr. Andrea Snelling [NIGL]).
• NERC Standard Grant (2009-2012): "Diatom silica oxygen isotope records from the Late Quaternary Antarctic Margin" NE/G004137/1 (Co-I with Dr. Jenny Pike [University of Cardiff], and Prof. Melanie Leng [NIGL]).

Recent Publications

• SWANN, G.E.A. and PATWARDHAN, S.V., 2011. Application of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) for assessing biogenic silica sample purity in geochemical analyses and palaeoenvironmental research Climate of the Past. 7, 65–74
• MACKAY, A.W., SWANN, G.E.A., BREWER, T. S., LENG, M.J., MORLEY, D.W., PIOTROWSKA , N., RIOUAL, P. and WHITE, D., 2011. A reassessment of late glacial - Holocene diatom oxygen isotope record from Lake Baikal using a geochemical mass-balance approach Journal of Quaternary Science. 26, 627-634
• BAILEY, I., LIU, Q., SWANN, G.E.A., JIANG, Z., SUN, Y., ZHAO, X. and ROBERTS, A.P., 2011. Iron fertilisation and biogeochemical cycles in the sub-Arctic northwest Pacific during the late Pliocene intensification of northern hemisphere glaciation Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 307, 253-265
• ROMERO O.E., SWANN G.E.A., HODELL, D.A., HELMKE, P., REY, D. and RUBIO, B., 2011. A highly productive Subarctic Atlantic during the Last Interglacial and the role of diatoms Geology. 39, 1015-1018

• View all publications

Past Research

Previous research grants:

• NERC Post-doctoral Research Fellowship (2008-2011): "Changes in the North Pacific Ocean biological pump over the last glacial-interglacial cycle" NE/F012969/1 (PI).
• NERC Isotope Geosciences Facilities Steering Committee (2010-2011): "Development of oxygen isotopes in chrysophyte cysts as a new palaeoenvironmental proxy in lacustrine systems" IP-1204-1110 (PI with Prof. Melanie Leng (NIGL), Dr. Andrea Snelling (NIGL) and Dr. Sergi Pla [Spanish Council for Scientific Research [CSIC]).
• NERC Isotope Geosciences Facilities Steering Committee (2008-2009): "Diatom δ¹⁸O evidence for the variability of the stratification and halocline conditions in the Subarctic Atlantic during the last glacial cycle" IP/1072/1108 (PI with Dr. Oscar Romero [Universidad de Granada, Spain]).
• NERC Isotope Geosciences Facilities Steering Committee (2008): "The role of the North West Pacific Ocean in controlling atmospheric concentrations of CO₂ during the last glacial cycle" IP/1015/0508 (Pi with Prof. Melanie Leng [NIGL]).

• SWANN, G.E.A. and PATWARDHAN, S.V., 2011. Application of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) for assessing biogenic silica sample purity in geochemical analyses and palaeoenvironmental research Climate of the Past. 7, 65–74
• MACKAY, A.W., SWANN, G.E.A., BREWER, T. S., LENG, M.J., MORLEY, D.W., PIOTROWSKA , N., RIOUAL, P. and WHITE, D., 2011. A reassessment of late glacial - Holocene diatom oxygen isotope record from Lake Baikal using a geochemical mass-balance approach Journal of Quaternary Science. 26, 627-634
• BAILEY, I., LIU, Q., SWANN, G.E.A., JIANG, Z., SUN, Y., ZHAO, X. and ROBERTS, A.P., 2011. Iron fertilisation and biogeochemical cycles in the sub-Arctic northwest Pacific during the late Pliocene intensification of northern hemisphere glaciation Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 307, 253-265
• ROMERO O.E., SWANN G.E.A., HODELL, D.A., HELMKE, P., REY, D. and RUBIO, B., 2011. A highly productive Subarctic Atlantic during the Last Interglacial and the role of diatoms Geology. 39, 1015-1018
• CHAPLIGIN, B.,, LENG, M.J.,, WEBB, E.,, ALEXANDRE, A.,, DODD, J.P.,, IJIRI, A.,, LÜCKE, A.,, SHEMESH, A.,, ABELMANN, A.,, HERZSCHUH, U.,, LONGSTAFFE, F.J.,, MEYER, H.,, MOSCHEN, R.,, OKAZAKI, Y.,, REES, N.H.,, SHARP, Z.D.,, SLOANE, H.J.,, SONZOGNI, C.,, SWANN, G.E.A.,, SYLVESTRE, F.,, TYLER, J.J., and YAM, R.,, 2011. Inter-laboratory comparison of oxygen isotope compositions from biogenic silica Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 75, 7242-7256
• VANE, C.H., KIM, A.W., MCGOWAN, S., LENG, M.J., HEATON, T.H.E., KENDRICK, C.P., COOMBS, P., YANG, H. and SWANN, G.E.A., 2010. Sedimentary records of sewage pollution using faecal markers in contrasting peri-urban shallow lakes Science of the Total Environment. 409, 345-356
• SWANN, G. E., 2010. Salinity changes in the North West Pacific Ocean during the late Pliocene/early Quaternary from 2.73 Ma to 2.52 Ma Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 297(1-2), 332-338
• SWANN, G. E., LENG, M. J., JUSCHUS, O., MELLES, M., BRIGHAM-GRETTE, J. and SLOANE, H. J., 2010. A combined oxygen and silicon diatom isotope record of Late Quaternary change in Lake El'gygytgyn, North East Siberia Quaternary Science Reviews. 29(5-6), 774-786
• LENG, M.J. and SWANN, G.E.A., 2010. Stable isotopes from diatom silica. In: SMOL, J.P. and STOERMER E.F., eds., The Diatoms: applications for the environmental and Earth Sciences Cambridge University Press. 575-589
• SWANN, G. E., 2010. A comparison of the Si/Al and Si/time wet-alkaline digestion methods for measurement of biogenic silica in lake sediments Journal of Paleolimnology. 44(2), 375-385
• LENG, M. J., SWANN, G. E., HODSON, M. J., TYLER, J. J., PATWARDHAN, S. V. and SLOANE, H. J., 2009. The Potential use of Silicon Isotope Composition of Biogenic Silica as a Proxy for Environmental Change Silicon. 1(2), 65-77
• SWANN, G. E. and LENG, M. J., 2009. A review of diatom δ18O in palaeoceanography Quaternary Science Reviews. 28(5-6), 384-398
• SWANN, G. E., LENG, M. J., SLOANE, H. J. and MASLIN, M. A., 2008. Isotope offsets in marine diatom δ18O over the last 200 ka Journal of Quaternary Science. 23(4), 389-400
• GRYGAR, T., BLÁHOVÁ, A., HRADIL, D., BEZDIČKA, P., KADLEC, J., SCHNABL, P., SWANN, G. and OBERHÄNSLI, H., 2007. Lake Baikal climatic record between 310 and 50 ky BP: Interplay between diatoms, watershed weathering and orbital forcing Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 250(1-4), 50-67
• SWANN, G.E.A., LENG, M.J., SLOANE, H.J., MASLIN, M.A. and ONODERA, J., 2007. Diatom oxygen isotopes: evidence of a species effect in the sediment record Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. 8(Q06012),
• GRYGAR, T., KADLEC, J., PRUNER, P., SWANN, G., BEZDIČKA, P., HRADIL, D., LANG, K., NOVOTNA, K. and OBERHÄNSLI, H., 2006. Paleoenvironmental record in Lake Baikal sediments: Environmental changes in the last 160 ky Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 237(2-4), 240-254
• SWANN, G. E. A., MASLIN, M. A., LENG, M. J., SLOANE, H. J. and HAUG, G. H., 2006. Diatom δ18O evidence for the development of the modern halocline system in the subarctic northwest Pacific at the onset of major Northern Hemisphere glaciation Paleoceanography. 21(PA1009),
• SWANN, G. E. and MACKAY, A. W., 2006. Potential limitations of biogenic silica as an indicator of abrupt climate change in Lake Baikal, Russia Journal of Paleolimnology. 36(1), 81-89
• MASLIN, M.A. and SWANN G.E.A., 2005. Isotopes in Marine Sediments. In: LENG, M.J., ed., Isotopes in Palaeoenvironmental Research Springer. 227-290
• SWANN, G. E., MACKAY, A. W., LENG, M. J. and DEMORY, F., 2005. Climatic change in Central Asia during MIS 3/2: a case study using biological responses from Lake Baikal Global and Planetary Change. 46(1-4), 235-253
• HAUG, G. H., GANOPOLSKI, A., SIGMAN, D. M., ROSELL-MELE, A., SWANN, G. E. A., TIEDEMANN, R., JACCARD, S. L., BOLLMANN, J., MASLIN, M. A. and LENG, M. J., 2005. North Pacific seasonality and the glaciation of North America 2.7 million years ago Nature. 433, 821-825