Earth and Planetary Surface Processes
surface

Peer-Reviewed Publications

* denotes group members under direct supervision

  1. *Hasson, M., *M.C. Marvin, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2024). Automated determination of transport and depositional environments in sand and sandstones. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., 121(40), doi: 10.1073/pnas.2407655121 [link]
  2. *Alvarez, C.A., *A. Gunn, C. Swann, S.M. Trimble, R.C. Ewing, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2024). Direct measurements of dust settling velocity under low-density atmospheres using time-resolved particle image velocimetry. Geophys. Res. Lett. 51(15), doi: 10.1029/2024GL109958 [link]
  3. Bedford, C.C., E.B. Rampe, M.T. Thorpe, R.C. Ewing, K. Mason, B. Horgan, A. Rudolph, M.G.A. Lapôtre, P. Sinha, M. Nachon, E. Champion, L. Berger, E. Reid, P.C. Gray (2024). The geochemical and mineralogical signature of glaciovolcanism near Þórisjökull, Iceland, and its implications for glaciovolcanism on Mars. J. Geophys. Res. Planet. 129(7), doi: 10.1029/2023JE008261 [link]
  4. Chen, T.G., S. Newdick, J. Di, N. Ongole, M.G.A. Lapôtre, M. Pavone, M.R. Cutkosky (2024). Locomotion as manipulation with ReachBot. Science Robotics, 9(89), doi: 10.1126/scirobotics.adi9762 [link]
  5. Courrech du Pont, S., D. Rubin, C. Narteau, M.G.A. Lapôtre, M. Day, P. Claudin, I. Livingstone, M.W. Telfer, J. Radebaugh, C. Gadal, *A. Gunn, P.A. Hesp, S. Carpy, C.S. Bristow, A.C.W. Baas, R.C. Ewing, G.F.S. Wiggs (accepted). Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid dynamics. Earth-Science Reviews, 255, doi: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2024.104772 [link]
  6. Finotello, A., A. Ielpi, M.G.A. Lapôtre, E. Lazarus, M. Ghinassi, L. Carniello, S. Favaro, D. Tognin, A. D'Alpaos (2024). Vegetation enhances curvature-driven dynamics in meandering rivers. Nature Communications, 15, 1968, doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-46292-x [link].
  7. *Prieur, N., *B. Amaro, *E. Gonzalez, H. Kerner, S. Medvedev, L. Rubanenko, S. Werner, Z. Xiao, D. Zastrozhnov, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2023). Automatic characterization of boulders on planetary surfaces from high-resolution satellite images. J. Geophys. Res. Planet. 128(111). doi: 10.1029/2023JE008013 [link].
  8. *Rubanenko, L.,*A. Gunn, *S. Pérez-López, L. Fenton, R.C. Ewing, A. Soto, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2023). Global surface winds and sediment pathways on Mars from the morphology of barchan dunes. Geophys. Res. Lett. 50(18). doi: 10.1029/2022GL102610 [link].
  9. *Marvin, M.C., M.G.A. Lapôtre, *A. Gunn, M. Day, A. Soto (2023). Dune interactions record changes in boundary conditions. Geology. doi: 10.1130/G51264.1 [link].
  10. *Hasson, M., *M.C. Marvin, *A. Gunn, A. Ielpi, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2023). A depositional model for meandering rivers before land plants. Sedimentology. doi: 10.1111/sed.13121 [link].
  11. Kodama, S., T. Pico, N.J. Finnegan, M.G.A. Lapôtre, J.K. Willenbring (2023). Glacial isostatic adjustment modulates lateral migration rate and morphology of the Red River (North Dakota, USA and Manitoba, Canda). Geophys. Res. Lett. 50(15). doi: 10.1029/2023GL103995 [link].
  12. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre (2023). Modelling fire-induced perturbations in sediment flux based on stream widening and accelerated lateral migration. Catena, 228. doi: 10.1016/j.catena.2023.107173 [link].
  13. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre, A. Finotello, P. Roy-Léveillée (2023). Large sinuous rivers are slowing down in a warming Arctic. Nat. Clim. Chang. 13. doi: 10.1038/s41558-023-01620-9 [link].
  14. Ielpi, A., A. Graham, D. Viero, M.G.A. Lapôtre, A. Finotello, M. Ghinassi (2023). How is time distributed in a meandering-river floodplain? Geophys. Res. Lett. 50(2). doi: 10.1029/2022GL101285 [link].
  15. *Rubanenko, L., M.G.A. Lapôtre, R.C. Ewing, L.K. Fenton, *A. Gunn (2022). A distinct ripple-formation regime on Mars revealed by the morphometrics of barchan dunes. Nature Communications 13, 7156. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-34974-3 [link].
  16. Schneider, S., A. Bylard, T.G. Chen, P. Wang, M. Cutkosky, M.G.A. Lapôtre, M. Pavone (2022). ReachBot: A small robot for large mobile manipulation tasks. IEEE Aerospace Conference. doi: 10.1109/AERO53065.2022.9843346 [link].
  17. Steelquist, A.T., M.G.A. Lapôtre, G.E. Hilley (2022). Drainage initiation, expansion, and channel-head arrest in heterogenous bedrock landscapes of the Colorado Plateau. GSA Bulletin. doi: 10.1130/B36375.1 [link].
  18. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre (2022). Linking sediment flux to river migration in arid landscapes through mass balance. J. Sed. Res. 92(8), 695-703, doi: 10.2110/jsr.2022.118 [link].
  19. *Gunn, A., *L. Rubanenko, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2022). Accumulation of windblown sand in impact craters on Mars. Geology, 50(9), 981-985. doi: 10.1130/G49936.1 [link].
  20. Lapôtre, M.G.A., J.L. Bishop, A. Ielpi, D.R. Lowe, K.S. Siebach, N.H. Sleep, S.M. Tikoo (2022). Mars as a time machine to Precambrian Earth. J. Geol. Soc., 179(5), doi: 10.1144/jgs2022-047 [link].
  21. Lapôtre, M.G.A., M. Malaska, M. Cable (2022). The role of seasonal sediment transport and sintering in shaping Titan's landscapes: A hypothesis. Geophys. Res. Lett., 49(8), doi: 10.1029/2021GL097605 [link].
  22. Rubin, D., M.G.A. Lapôtre, A. Stevens, M. Lamb, C. Fedo, J. Grotzinger, S. Gupta, K. Stack, A. Vasavada, S. Banham, A. Bryk, G. Caravaca, J. Christian, L. Edgar, M. Malin (2022). Ancient winds, waves, and atmosphere in Gale crater, Mars, inferred from sedimentary structures and wave modeling. J. Geophys. Res. Planet., 127(4), doi: 10.1029/2021JE007162 [link].
  23. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre, M. Gibling, C.K. Boyce (2022). The impact of vegetation on meandering rivers. Nature Reviews Earth & Environ., 3, 165-178, doi: 10.1038/s43017-021-00249-6 [link].
  24. Diniega, S., D.M. Burr, M. Chojnacki, M.G.A. Lapôtre, C. Swann (2022). Martian dunes: A crucial record of present and past Mars surface environment and aeolian processes. Treatise on Geomorphology (2nd Edition), pp. 617-636, doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-818234-5.00177-2 [link].
  25. *Rubanenko, L., *S. Pérez-López, *J. Schull, M.G.A. Lapôtre (2021). Automatic detection and segmentation of barchan dunes on Mars and Earth using a convolutional neural network. IEEE J-STARS, doi: 10.1109/JSTARS.2021.3109900 [link].
  26. Diniega, S., A.M. Bramson, B. Buratti, P. Buhler, D.M. Burr, M. Chojnacki, S.J. Conway, C.M. Dundas, C.J. Hansen, A.S. McEwen, M.G.A. Lapôtre, J. Levy, L. Mc Keown, S. Piqueux, G. Portyankina, C. Swann, T.N. Titus, J.M. Widmer (2021). Modern Mars' geomorphological activity, driven by wind, frost, and gravity. Geomorphology, 380, 107627, doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2021.107627 [link]. 
  27. Lapôtre, M.G.A., R.C. Ewing, & M.P. Lamb (2021). An evolving understanding of enigmatic large ripples on Mars. J. Geophys. Res. Planet., 126(2), doi:10.1029/2020JE006729 [link].
  28. Kurokawa, H., B.L. Ehlmann, M.C. De Sanctis, M.G.A. Lapôtre, T. Usui, N.T. Stein, T.H. Prettyman, A. Raponi, & M. Ciarnello (2020). A probabilistic approach to determination of Ceres' average surface composition from Dawn VIR and GRaND data. J. Geophys. Res. Planet., 125(12), doi: 10.1029/2020JE006606 [link].
  29. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre, A. Finotello, & M. Ghinassi (2020). Planform-asymmetry and backwater effects on river-cutoff kinematics and clustering. Earth Surf. Proc. Land., doi: 10.1002/esp.5029 [link].
  30. Lapôtre, M.G.A. & A. Ielpi (2020). The pace of fluvial meanders on Mars and implications for the western delta deposits of Jezero crater, Mars. AGU Advances, 1(2), doi: 10.1029/2019AV000141 [link].
  31. Lapôtre, M.G.A., J.G. O'Rourke, L.K. Schaefer, K.L. Siebach, C. Spalding, S. Tikoo, & R.D. Wordsworth (2020). Probing space to understand Earth. Nature Reviews Earth & Environ., doi: 10.1038/s43017-020-0029-y [link] [free pdf].
  32. Ielpi, A., M.G.A. Lapôtre, A. Finotello, M. Ghinassi, A. D'Alpaos (2020). Channel mobility drives a diverse stratigraphic architecture in the dryland Mojave River (California, USA). Earth Surf. Proc. Land., doi: 10.1002/esp.4841 [link].
  33. Ielpi, A., & M.G.A. Lapôtre (2020). A ten-fold slowdown in river meander migration driven by plant life. Nature Geosci., 13, 82-86, doi: 10.1038//s41561-019-0491-7 [link].
  34. Lapôtre, M.G.A., A. Ielpi, M.P. Lamb, R.W.E. Williams, & A.H. Knoll (2019). Model for the formation of single-thread rivers in barren landscapes and implications for pre-Silurian and martian fluvial deposits. J. Geoph. Res. Earth Surf., doi: 10.1029/2019JF005156 [link].
  35. Ielpi, A., & M.G.A. Lapôtre (2019). Barren meandering streams in the modern Toiyabe Basin of Nevada, and their relevance to the study of the pre-vegetation rock record. J. Sed. Res., 89(5), 399-415, doi: 10.2110/jsr.2019.25 [link]. ​
  36. Ielpi, A., & M.G.A. Lapôtre (2019). Biotic forcing militates against river meandering in the modern Bonneville Basin of Utah. Sedimentology, doi: 10.1111/sed.12562 [link]. ​
  37. Rampe, E.B., M.G.A. Lapôtre, & 27 other coauthors (2018). Sand mineralogy within the Bagnold Dunes, Gale crater, as observed in situ and from orbit. Geoph. Res. Letters, 45(18), 9488-9497, doi: 10.1029/2018GL079073 [link]. ​
  38. Weitz, C.M., R. Sullivan, M.G.A. Lapôtre, S. Rowland, J. Grant, M.M Baker, & A. Yingst (2018). Sand grain sizes and shapes in eolian bedforms at Gale crater, Mars. Geoph. Res. Letters, 45(18), 9471-9479, doi: 10.1029/2018GL078972 [link]. ​
  39. Lapôtre, M.G.A., R.C. Ewing, C.M. Weitz, K. Lewis, M.P. Lamb, B.L. Ehlmann, & D.M. Rubin (2018). Morphologic diversity of martian ripples: Implications for large-ripple formation. Geoph. Res. Letters, 45(19), 10229-10239, doi: 10.1029/2018GL079029 [link].
  40. Lapôtre, M.G.A., & E.B. Rampe (2018). Curiosity’s investigation of the Bagnold Dunes, Gale crater: Overview of the two-phase campaign and introduction to the special collection. Geoph. Res. Letters, 45(19), 10200-10210, doi: 10.1029/2018GL079032 [link]. ​
  41. Baker, M., M.G.A. Lapôtre, M. Minitti, C. Newman, R. Sullivan, C.M. Weitz, B.L. Ehlmann, A. Vasavada, K. Edgett, N.T. Bridges, & K. Lewis (2018). The Bagnold Dunes in southern summer: Active sediment transport on Mars observed by the Curiosity rover. Geoph. Res. Letters, 45(17), 8853-8863, doi: 10.1029/2018GL079040 [link].
  42. Lapôtre, M.G.A., M.P. Lamb (2018). Substrate controls on valley formation by groundwater on Earth and Mars. Geology, 46(6), 531-534, doi: 10.1130/G40007.1 [link].
  43. Baker, M.M., C.E. Newman, M.G.A. Lapôtre, R. Sullivan, N.T. Bridges, K.W. Lewis (2018). Coarse sediment transport in the modern Martian environment. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 123(6), 1380-1394, doi: 10.1002/2017JE005513 [link].
  44. Banham, S., S. Gupta, D. Rubin, J. Watkins, K.S. Edgett, D.Y. Sumner, J.P. Grotzinger, K. Lewis, L. Edgar, K. Stack, R. Barnes, J. Bell III, M.D. Day, R.C. Ewing, M.G.A. Lapôtre, N. Stein, F. Rivera-Hernandez, A. Vasavada (2018). Ancient Martian aeolian processes and palaeogeomorphology reconstructed from the Stimson formation on the lower slope of Aeolis Mons, Gale crater, Mars. Sedimentology, 65(4), 993-1042, doi:10.1111/sed.12469 [link].
  45. Conte, D., & 14 coauthors including M.G.A. Lapôtre (2017). Advanced concept for a crewed mission to the Martian moons. Acta Astronautica, 139, 545-563, doi: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2017.07.044 [link].
  46. Ewing, R.C., M.G.A. Lapôtre, K. Lewis, M. Day, N. Stein, D. M. Rubin, N. T. Bridges, R. Sullivan, W. W. Fischer, M. P. Lamb, S. Gupta (2017). Sedimentary processes of the Bagnold Dunes: Implications for the eolian rock record of Mars. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 122(12), 2544-2573, doi: 10.1002/2017JE005324 [link].
  47. Ehlmann, B.L., K.S. Edgett, B. Sutter, C.N. Achilles, M.L. Litvak, M.G.A. Lapôtre, A.A. Fraeman, & 32 coauthors (2017). Chemistry, mineralogy, and grain properties at Namib and High Dunes, Bagnold Dune Field, Gale crater, Mars: A synthesis of Curiosity rover observations. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 122(12), 2510-2543, doi: 10.1002/2017JE005267 [link].
  48. Bridges, N.T., & 11 coauthors including M.G.A. Lapôtre (2017). Martian aeolian activity at the Bagnold Dunes, Gale crater: The view from the surface and orbit. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 122(10), 2077-2110, doi: 10.1002/2017JE005263 [link].
  49. Lapôtre, M.G.A., B.L. Ehlmann, & S.E. Minson (2017). A probabilistic approach to remote compositional analysis of planetary surfaces. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 122(5), 983-1009, doi: 10.1002/2016JE005248 [link].
  50. Lapôtre, M.G.A., B.L. Ehlmann, S.E. Minson, R.E. Arvidson, F. Ayoub, A.A. Fraeman, R.C. Ewing, & N.T. Bridges (2017). Compositional variations in sands of the Bagnold Dunes, Gale crater, Mars, from visible-shortwave infrared spectroscopy and comparison to ground-truth from the Curiosity rover. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 122(12), 2489-2509, doi: 10.1002/2016JE005133 [link].
  51. Lapôtre, M.G.A., M.P. Lamb, & B. McElroy (2017). What sets the size of current ripples? Geology, 45(3), 243-246, doi: 10.1130/G38598.1 [link].
  52. Kreisch, C.D., J.A. O’Sullivan, R.E. Arvidson, D.V. Politte, L. He, N.T. Stein, J. Finkel, E.A. Guiness, M.J. Wolff, & M.G.A. Lapôtre (2017). Regularization of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CRISM along-track oversampled hyperspectral imaging observations of Mars. Icarus, 282, 136-151, doi: 10.1016/j.icarus.2016.09.033 [link].
  53. Lapôtre, M.G.A., R. Ewing, M.P. Lamb, W.W. Fischer, J. P. Grotzinger, D. Rubin, K. Lewis, M. Ballard, M. Day, S. Gupta, & 12 other coauthors (2016). Large wind ripples on Mars: A record of atmospheric evolution. Science, 353(6294) 55-58, doi: 10.1126/science.aaf3206 [open-access link].
  54. Lapôtre, M.G.A., M.P. Lamb, R.M.E. Williams (2016). Canyon formation constraints on the discharge of catastrophic outburst floods of Earth and Mars. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 121(7), 1232-1263, doi: 10.1002/2016JE005061 [link].
  55. Lapôtre, M.G.A., M. P. Lamb (2015). Hydraulics of floods upstream of horseshoe canyons and waterfalls. J. Geophys. Res. Earth Surface, 120(7), 1227-1250, doi: 10.1002/2014JF003412 [link].
  56. Arvidson, R.E., & 21 coauthors including M.G.A. Lapôtre (2015). Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Opportunity observations of Burns formation and underlying strata: Crater hopping at Meridiani Planum. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 120(3), 429-451, doi:10.1002/2014JE004686 [link].
  57. Perron, J.T., P.W. Richardson, K.L. Ferrier, & M.G.A. Lapôtre (2012). The root of branching river networks. Nature, 492, 100-103, doi:10.1038/nature11762 [link].