The Professorship's Research Fields
Importance of near-surface substrates for water balance and material transfer
The study of the slope water dynamics in small spring catchments of the Erzgebirge (Germany) and other mid-mountain ranges serves to deepen the knowledge of the drainage paths of the groundwater taking into account the layered structure of the near-surface subsurface.
Upper Quaternary cover sediments and their soils as paleoclimate indicators in the northern Great Basin and adjacent mountains (USA)
The aim of the investigations is to stratigraphically classify cover sediments and their soils on the basis of well-dated lake sediments, coastal forms, glacial deposits and tephras and to explore their structure.
Analysis of loess sediments in different landscapes
Loess-containing top layers often differ very little from each other in sedimentological terms. However, they are often separated by soil formations with clay enrichment horizons and basal lime enrichment horizons. The latter have largely dominated fossil and deeper soils. In order to explain the geomorphological formation, the soil formation and the slope water balance, the aolian components incorporated into the top layer play an essential role.
Studies on the river history of the low mountain rivers
Rivers are landscape elements with high variability. On the one hand, they are characterized by a multiple alternation of erosion and re-shedging processes, which are reflected in the river terraces. Their formation is largely caused by changes in the climate or by tectonics. In addition, there were changes in course due to the taping by other rivers. Today, gravel can be found far away from the recent rivers. Therefore, the study of the history of flowing waters is an important part of geomorphological and landscape studies.