Leah E Morgan, Ph.D.
Leah Morgan is a Research Geologist with the Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center.
I joined the 40Ar/39Ar geochronology lab at the USGS in Denver, Colorado as a research geologist in 2015. I was previously a Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow at the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center and at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. I received a PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in 2009, and a BA from Carleton College in 2004. I was born and raised in Vermont.
I have worked on a range of applications and method development issues in 40Ar/39Ar geochronology. Applications have largely focused on questions in paleoanthropology and the geologic timescale. Method development projects include developing metrologically traceable systems for measuring absolute quantities of 40Ar and 40K, and the design of a mobile neutron source for the future in situ deployment of 40Ar/39Ar capabilities on planetary surfaces
USGS Service
- 2020-present, USGS TRIGA Reactor Operating Committee
- 2017-present, USGS Radiation Safety Committee
- 2016-present, USGS Rocky Mountain Science Seminar Series Convener
- 2018-2020 GGGSC Early Career Advisory Team, GGGSC
Professional Experience
2015-present, Research Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey
2014, Visiting Assistant Professor, Geology Department, Carleton College
2011-2014, Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center, University of Glasgow, Scotland
2009-2011, Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Earth & Planetary Science, University of California at Berkeley, 2009
B.S. Geology, Carleton College, 2004
Affiliations and Memberships*
2018-present, Affiliate Faculty, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO
2021, co-Chair, Gordon Research Conference on Geochronology
2019, vice-Chair, Gordon Research Conference on Geochronology
2018-2019, Chair and Founder, Geochronology Division of the Geological Society of America
2019-present, Advisory Member, Committee for the Stratigraphy and Chronology Commission, International Union for Quaternary Research
2018-present, Steering Committee Member, EarthRates Research Coordination Network
Honors and Awards
2019, USGS Superior Service Award
Science and Products
40Ar/39Ar geochronology and petrogenesis of the Table Mountain Shoshonite, Golden, Colorado, U.S.A.
Elemental, isotopic, and geochronological variability in Mogollon-Datil volcanic province archaeological obsidian, southwestern USA: Solving issues of intersource discrimination
High-precision 41K/39K measurements by MC-ICP-MS indicate terrestrial variability of δ41K
Characteristics and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Erdenet Cu-Mo deposit, Mongolia
Instrumentation development for In Situ 40Ar/39Ar planetary geochronology
Episodic formation of the world-class Waihi epithermal Au-Ag vein system, Hauraki Goldfield, New Zealand
Preservation of ancient impact ages on the R chondrite parent body: 40Ar/39Ar age of hornblende-bearing R chondrite LAP 04840
Pressure disequilibria induced by rapid valve closure in noble gas extraction lines
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Tonopah, Divide, and Goldfield districts, Nevada
Argon data for: Elemental, isotopic, and geochronological variability in Mogollon-Datil Volcanic Province, New Mexico
Argon data for Poncha Pass Geologic Map
40Ar/39Ar data for: Characteristics and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Erdenet Cu-Mo deposit, Mongolia
Science and Products
40Ar/39Ar geochronology and petrogenesis of the Table Mountain Shoshonite, Golden, Colorado, U.S.A.
Elemental, isotopic, and geochronological variability in Mogollon-Datil volcanic province archaeological obsidian, southwestern USA: Solving issues of intersource discrimination
High-precision 41K/39K measurements by MC-ICP-MS indicate terrestrial variability of δ41K
Characteristics and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Erdenet Cu-Mo deposit, Mongolia
Instrumentation development for In Situ 40Ar/39Ar planetary geochronology
Episodic formation of the world-class Waihi epithermal Au-Ag vein system, Hauraki Goldfield, New Zealand
Preservation of ancient impact ages on the R chondrite parent body: 40Ar/39Ar age of hornblende-bearing R chondrite LAP 04840
Pressure disequilibria induced by rapid valve closure in noble gas extraction lines
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Tonopah, Divide, and Goldfield districts, Nevada
Argon data for: Elemental, isotopic, and geochronological variability in Mogollon-Datil Volcanic Province, New Mexico
Argon data for Poncha Pass Geologic Map
40Ar/39Ar data for: Characteristics and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Erdenet Cu-Mo deposit, Mongolia
*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