As permafrost soils in the Arctic warm and thaw, greenhouse gases including methane are released into the atmosphere. USGS Ecologist Kristen Manies of the USGS Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center (GMEGSC) is researching low-cost ways to measure methane emissions across these changing ecosystems.
Kristen Manies
Kristen is an Ecologist with Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center in Menlo Park, CA. She studies how disturbances affect the carbon cycle, with the majority of her research focusing on the boreal region of Alaska and Canada.
Kristen's research explores how disturbance affects the global carbon cycle. Carbon enters soil from dead plant material and exits the soil through decomposition and root respiration. The amount of carbon stored in soil is the sum of these inputs minus the sum of loses. Understanding what controls this balance is important because 1) there is nearly three times the amount of carbon in soils than in the atmosphere, so changes in soil carbon storage can have large impacts on the amount of atmospheric carbon, and 2) soil carbon is tied to soil health.
For most of her career Kristen has been focused on the carbon cycle of the boreal region of Interior Alaska and Canada. Boreal soils are known carbon sinks, meaning that more carbon enters than leaves the soil. However, boreal regions are experiencing a great deal of warming due to climate change. This warming is causing more and higher intensity fires. It is also thawing the permafrost, or frozen soil, that underlies much of the boreal region. These disturbances have the potential to impact not just the amount of carbon entering and leaving the soil, but also the way carbon moves through these ecosystems and rates of this movement. Kristen's research looks for these changes.
Non-USGS Partners:
- NASA-Ames
- NASA-JPL
- University of Alaska
- Fairbanks
- Bonanza Creek LTER
Education and Certifications
University of Wisconsin, Madison, Forest Ecology, M.S. 1997
University of California, Santa Barbara, Environmental Studies, B.S. 1991
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
Permafrost Carbon Network,
International Soil Carbon Network
Science and Products
Response of plant, microbial, and soil functions to drought and fire in California
Arctic Biogeochemical Response to Permafrost Thaw (ABRUPT)
Plant, soil, and microbial characteristics of marsh collapse in Mississippi River Deltaic wetlands
Depth to frozen soil measurements at APEX, 2008-2023
Depth to frozen soil measurements taken by a variety of collaborators at the Alaskan Peatland EXeriment (APEX) bog/permafrost plateau site. Data is from 2018 - 2023.
Soil data and age models used to investigate the effects of permafrost thaw on carbon storage, Interior Alaska
Permafrost characterization at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site: Geophysical and related field data collected from 2018-2020
![USGS using drones to measure methane escaping Arctic permafrost - Aug 2023 Field crew sit on boardwalk while collecting UAS methane measurements in Alaska 2023](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/2023-07-31%20AK%20-%20UAS%20field%20crew%20sitting%20on%20boardwalk.jpg?itok=TuEN2zwO)
As permafrost soils in the Arctic warm and thaw, greenhouse gases including methane are released into the atmosphere. USGS Ecologist Kristen Manies of the USGS Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center (GMEGSC) is researching low-cost ways to measure methane emissions across these changing ecosystems.
![Field crew sit on boardwalk while collecting UAS methane measurements in Alaska 2023](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/2023-07-31%20AK%20-%20UAS%20field%20crew%20sitting%20on%20boardwalk.jpg?itok=TuEN2zwO)
Collaborators Kristen Manies (Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center), Joe Adams (National Uncrewed Systems Office, NUSO), Victoria Scholl (NUSO), Brian Gullett U.S.
Collaborators Kristen Manies (Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center), Joe Adams (National Uncrewed Systems Office, NUSO), Victoria Scholl (NUSO), Brian Gullett U.S.
![Measuring natural methane emissions from bogs using drones in Alaska B-Roll UAS carrying the methane sensor (left) and a smaller UAS used to collect videos and photos (right) in Alaska](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/nuso_AKFairbanks_uas.jpg?itok=grPn_RTi)
Permafrost is ground that has been frozen for at least two years. With the warming climate, permafrost across Alaska is thawing and greenhouse gases such as methane are released as a result. Ecologist Kristen Manies of the U.S.
Permafrost is ground that has been frozen for at least two years. With the warming climate, permafrost across Alaska is thawing and greenhouse gases such as methane are released as a result. Ecologist Kristen Manies of the U.S.
A scientist conducts winter instrument maintenance in interior Alaska surrounded by snow covered forest.
A scientist conducts winter instrument maintenance in interior Alaska surrounded by snow covered forest.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Scientific crew and drone operators. Left to right: Richard Kolyer (NASA), Jack McFarland (USGS), Kristen Manies (USGS), and Jonas Jonsson (NASA)
Scientific crew and drone operators. Left to right: Richard Kolyer (NASA), Jack McFarland (USGS), Kristen Manies (USGS), and Jonas Jonsson (NASA)
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Stark comparison between bog (no permafrost) in the foreground and a boreal forest (with permafrost) in the background in the Alaskan interior.
Stark comparison between bog (no permafrost) in the foreground and a boreal forest (with permafrost) in the background in the Alaskan interior.
The effect of drying boreal lakes on plants, soils, and microbial communities in lake margin habitats
Thermal and hydrological limitations on modeling carbon dynamics at wetland sites of discontinuous and continuous permafrost extent
Vegetation loss following vertical drowning of Mississippi River deltaic wetlands leads to faster microbial decomposition and decreases in soil carbon
Medium-fidelity CFD modeling of multicopter wakes for airborne sensor measurements
Biofilms in the Critical Zone: Distribution and mediation of processes
The Boreal-Arctic Wetland and Lake Dataset (BAWLD)
Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw
Carbon fluxes and microbial activities from boreal peatlands experiencing permafrost thaw
USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources
Generalized models to estimate carbon and nitrogen stocks of organic soil horizons in Interior Alaska
Rapid carbon loss and slow recovery following permafrost thaw in boreal peatlands
Soil data for a thermokarst bog and the surrounding permafrost plateau forest, located at Bonanza Creek Long Term Ecological Research Site, Interior Alaska
Science and Products
Response of plant, microbial, and soil functions to drought and fire in California
Arctic Biogeochemical Response to Permafrost Thaw (ABRUPT)
Plant, soil, and microbial characteristics of marsh collapse in Mississippi River Deltaic wetlands
Depth to frozen soil measurements at APEX, 2008-2023
Depth to frozen soil measurements taken by a variety of collaborators at the Alaskan Peatland EXeriment (APEX) bog/permafrost plateau site. Data is from 2018 - 2023.
Soil data and age models used to investigate the effects of permafrost thaw on carbon storage, Interior Alaska
Permafrost characterization at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site: Geophysical and related field data collected from 2018-2020
![USGS using drones to measure methane escaping Arctic permafrost - Aug 2023 Field crew sit on boardwalk while collecting UAS methane measurements in Alaska 2023](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/2023-07-31%20AK%20-%20UAS%20field%20crew%20sitting%20on%20boardwalk.jpg?itok=TuEN2zwO)
As permafrost soils in the Arctic warm and thaw, greenhouse gases including methane are released into the atmosphere. USGS Ecologist Kristen Manies of the USGS Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center (GMEGSC) is researching low-cost ways to measure methane emissions across these changing ecosystems.
As permafrost soils in the Arctic warm and thaw, greenhouse gases including methane are released into the atmosphere. USGS Ecologist Kristen Manies of the USGS Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center (GMEGSC) is researching low-cost ways to measure methane emissions across these changing ecosystems.
![Field crew sit on boardwalk while collecting UAS methane measurements in Alaska 2023](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/2023-07-31%20AK%20-%20UAS%20field%20crew%20sitting%20on%20boardwalk.jpg?itok=TuEN2zwO)
Collaborators Kristen Manies (Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center), Joe Adams (National Uncrewed Systems Office, NUSO), Victoria Scholl (NUSO), Brian Gullett U.S.
Collaborators Kristen Manies (Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center), Joe Adams (National Uncrewed Systems Office, NUSO), Victoria Scholl (NUSO), Brian Gullett U.S.
![Measuring natural methane emissions from bogs using drones in Alaska B-Roll UAS carrying the methane sensor (left) and a smaller UAS used to collect videos and photos (right) in Alaska](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/nuso_AKFairbanks_uas.jpg?itok=grPn_RTi)
Permafrost is ground that has been frozen for at least two years. With the warming climate, permafrost across Alaska is thawing and greenhouse gases such as methane are released as a result. Ecologist Kristen Manies of the U.S.
Permafrost is ground that has been frozen for at least two years. With the warming climate, permafrost across Alaska is thawing and greenhouse gases such as methane are released as a result. Ecologist Kristen Manies of the U.S.
A scientist conducts winter instrument maintenance in interior Alaska surrounded by snow covered forest.
A scientist conducts winter instrument maintenance in interior Alaska surrounded by snow covered forest.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Scientific crew and drone operators. Left to right: Richard Kolyer (NASA), Jack McFarland (USGS), Kristen Manies (USGS), and Jonas Jonsson (NASA)
Scientific crew and drone operators. Left to right: Richard Kolyer (NASA), Jack McFarland (USGS), Kristen Manies (USGS), and Jonas Jonsson (NASA)
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.
Stark comparison between bog (no permafrost) in the foreground and a boreal forest (with permafrost) in the background in the Alaskan interior.
Stark comparison between bog (no permafrost) in the foreground and a boreal forest (with permafrost) in the background in the Alaskan interior.
The effect of drying boreal lakes on plants, soils, and microbial communities in lake margin habitats
Thermal and hydrological limitations on modeling carbon dynamics at wetland sites of discontinuous and continuous permafrost extent
Vegetation loss following vertical drowning of Mississippi River deltaic wetlands leads to faster microbial decomposition and decreases in soil carbon
Medium-fidelity CFD modeling of multicopter wakes for airborne sensor measurements
Biofilms in the Critical Zone: Distribution and mediation of processes
The Boreal-Arctic Wetland and Lake Dataset (BAWLD)
Influence of permafrost type and site history on losses of permafrost carbon after thaw
Carbon fluxes and microbial activities from boreal peatlands experiencing permafrost thaw
USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources
Generalized models to estimate carbon and nitrogen stocks of organic soil horizons in Interior Alaska
Rapid carbon loss and slow recovery following permafrost thaw in boreal peatlands
Soil data for a thermokarst bog and the surrounding permafrost plateau forest, located at Bonanza Creek Long Term Ecological Research Site, Interior Alaska
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government