Peter van der Beek
Prof. Dr. Peter van der Beek
General Geology | Group Leader
- +49 331 977 705700
- Campus Golm
Haus 27 / Raum 1.31
Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24-25
14476 Potsdam-Golm
CV
Career path:
2020- Professor of General Geology, Universität Potsdam, Germany
2018-2019 Alexander von Humboldt visiting research fellow, Universität Potsdam, Germany
2011 Visiting Fellow, CIRES, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA
2006-2020 Professor, Université Joseph Fourier / Université Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France
2001-2002 Part-time appointment as research fellow at the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
1998-2006 Assistant Professor (Maître de Conférences), Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France
1995-1997 Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
1991-1995 Research Assistant, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Education:
2003 Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
1995 PhD in Earth Sciences, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
1990 MSc in Earth Sciences, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Synergistic Activities:
- President of the European Geosciences Union (EGU) 2024-2027.
- Chair of the EGU Programme Committee (2020-2022)
- Editor for Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems (2020-2023); Associate editor from 2024.
- Associate editor for Tectonics (2018-2020)
- President of the EGU Geomorphology division (2015-2019)
- Member of EGU Council (2015-2019 ; 2020-2022; 2024-), Programme Committee (2015-2022) and Topical Events Committee (2017-2019)
- President of the organising committee of the 14th International Conference on Thermochronology, Chamonix-Mt. Blanc, France (2014)
- Editor-in-Chief for Basin Research (2008-2014)
Honors and Awards:
- European Research Council Advanced Grant (2019)
- Alexander von Humboldt Research Award (2017)
- Senior member of the Institut Universitaire de France (2015-2020)
- European Geosciences Union Ralph Alger Bagnold Medal 2014
- Junior member of the Institut Universitaire de France (2005-2010)
Research
Research Interests:
My main research interests are in the tectonic and climatic controls on relief and erosion rates in mountain belts, numerical modelling of erosional processes, long-term landscape development, and quantifying exhumation and erosion histories using low-temperature thermochronology and cosmogenic nuclides. I have worked extensively in the Himalaya, as well as in the European Alps, Iran and the Pyrenees. I am particularly interested in the tectonic and climatic controls on lateral variations in relief and erosion in the Himalaya, and the role of Quaternary glaciation in relief development and the erosion history of mountain belts.
Current Research Project:
- ERC Advanced Grant, “COOLER” (Climatic Controls on Erosion Rates and Relief of Mountains Belts), European Research Council, 2020-2025.
Quantifying the feedbacks between tectonic processes in the lithosphere and climatic processes in the atmosphere is an overarching goal in Earth-Systems research, as it underpins our ability to differentiate natural from anthropogenic climate forcing. Advancing our understanding of these feedbacks requires the development of tools that record erosion rates and relief changes with higher spatial and temporal resolution than the current state-of-the-art, and integrating the newly obtained data into next-generation numerical models that link observed erosion-rate and relief histories to potential driving mechanisms.
The ERC-funded project COOLER shoulders this task. We will:
- Develop new high-resolution thermochronology by setting up a world-leading 4He/3He laboratory;
- Develop numerical modelling tools that incorporate the latest insights in kinetics of thermochronological systems and make sample-specific predictions;
- Couple these tools to glacial landscape-evolution models, enabling modelling of real landscapes with real thermochronology data as constraints; and
- Study potential feedbacks between glacial erosion and tectonic deformation in carefully selected field areas.
The new high-resolution data will be integrated and extrapolated to quantitatively assess the impact of late Cenozoic climate change on erosion rates. Integration and analysis of the data will lead to novel insights into the two-way coupling of glacial erosion and tectonics, as well as latitudinal trends in glacial erosion patterns.
Selected Previous Research Projects:
- Coupling Lithosphere Deformation with Surface Processes and Stratigraphy (COLORS): consortium of 5 European Earth-Science departments and the TOTAL energy company; 2016-2019 (PI).
- Investigating Tectonic-Erosion-Climate Couplings in the Himalaya (iTECC): European Commission FP7 Initial Training Network (10 full partner institutes; 12 associate partners); 2013-2017 (PI).
- Erosion and Relief development in the western Alps (ERD-Alps): Agence Nationale de la Recherche (4 French partner institutes); 2008-2013 (Project Leader).
- Coupled climatic/tectonic forcing of European topography revealed through thermochronometry (Thermo-Europe): European Science Foundation Eurocores Topo-Europe programme (8 European partner institutes); 2008-2012 (Project Leader).
Publications
The list below shows my publications over the last 5 years, as well as slected publications prior to that.
* indicates a PhD candidate under my supervision; # a post-doc.
Also see my full list of publications on Publons, Research Gate or Google Scholar.
2025 and in press
Bernard, M.#, P.A. van der Beek, V.K. Pedersen, C. Colleps#, 2025, Production and preservation of low-relief surfaces in mountainous landscapes by Pliocene-Quaternary glaciations, AGU Advances, 6, e2024AV001610, doi: 10.1029/2024AV001610. (see also Editor's Highlight)
Colleps, C.L.#, P. van der Beek, J. Amalberti, E. Sobel, M. Tremblay, M. Bernard#, Evaluating the resolving power of apatite 4He/3He thermochronology: Insights from the Fish Canyon Tuff, Geology, in press, doi: 10.1130/G53000.1.
Curry, M.E., P. van der Beek, 2025, Exploring controls on post-orogenic topographic stasis of the Pyrenees Mountains with inverse landscape evolution modeling, Journal of Geophysical Research – Earth Surface, 130, e2024JF007759, doi: 10.1029/2024JF007759.
Zhao, Z., T. Shen, G. Wang, P. van der Beek, Y. Zhou, C. Ma, 2025, Relict landscape evolution and fault reactivation in the Eastern Tianshan: Insights from the Harlik Mountains, Solid Earth, 16, 503–530, doi: 10.5194/se-16-503-2025.
2024
Bernet, M., P. van der Beek, P. Valla, C. Glotzbach, 2024, The detrital thermochronological record of exhumation of the European Alps since the Early Eocene, in: Geodynamics of the Alps – volume 3: Collisional Processes, C. Rosenberg and N. Bellahsen (Eds.), Wiley/ISTE Editions, p. 191-230, doi: 10.1002/9781394299560.ch4.
Colleps, C. L.#, P.A. van der Beek, J. Amalberti, A. Denker, M.M. Tremblay, M. Bernard#, A. H. Dittwald, J. Bundesmann, 2024, Improving the accessibility and efficiency of proton irradiations for 4He/3He thermochronology, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 25, e2023GC011334, doi: 10.1029/2023GC011334.
Erbello, A., D. Melnick, E. Sobel, B. Bookhagen, H. Pingel, C. Colleps#, G. Zeilinger, P. van der Beek, M.R. Strecker, 2024, Magma-assisted continental rifting: The Broadly Rifted Zone in SW Ethiopia, East Africa, Tectonics, 43, e2022TC007651, doi: 10.1029/2022TC007651.
Gong, L.*, P. van der Beek, T. F. Schildgen, E. R. Sobel, S. Racano, A. Mariotti, F. McNab, 2024, Drainage rearrangement in an intra-continental mountain belt: A case study from the central South Tian Shan, Kyrgyzstan. Earth Surface Dynamics, 12, 973–994. doi: 10.5194/esurf-12-973-2024.
Mai Yung Sen, V., P.G. Valla, P.A. van der Beek, F. Lemot, C. Crouzet, G. Brocard, 2024, Paleo-valley infills record landscape response to late-Quaternary glacial/interglacial climate oscillations in the French western Alps, Quaternary Science Reviews, 331, 108632, doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev. 2024.108632.
Racano, S.#, P.A. van der Beek, T.F. Schildgen, C. Faccenna, V. Buleo Tebar, D. Cosentino, Slab driven Quaternary rock-uplift and topographic evolution in the northern-central Apennines from linear inversion of the drainage system, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 7, e2024GC011592, doi: 10.1029/2024gc011592.
2023
Ariagno, C.*, S. Pasquet, C. Le Bouteiller, P. van der Beek, S. Klotz, 2023, Seasonal dynamics of marly badlands illustrated by field records of hillslope regolith properties, Draix-Bléone Critical Zone Observatory, South-East France, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms,48, 1526-1539, doi: 10.1002/esp.5564.
Audin, L., B. Gérard, C. Gautheron, S. Schwartz, C. Benavente, X. Robert, P. van der Beek, R. Pinna-Jamme, M. Balvay, M. Bernet, A. Margirier, S. Zerathe, 2023, Burial in the western Central Andes through Oligocene to Miocene ignimbrite flare ups recorded by low-temperature thermochronology in the Cañete Canyon, Peru, Terra Nova, 35, 488–497, doi: 10.1111/ter.12669.
Bernet, M., P. van der Beek, P. Valla, C. Glotzbach, 2023, The detrital thermochronological record of exhumation of the European Alps since the Early Eocene, in: Geodynamics of the Alps – volume 3: Collisional Processes, C. Rosenberg and N. Bellahsen (Eds.), Wiley/ISTE Editions, p. 191-230.
Clubb, F.J, S.M. Mudd, T.F. Schildgen, P.A. van der Beek, R. Devrani, H.D. Sinclair, 2023, Himalayan valley-floor widths controlled by tectonically driven exhumation, Nature Geoscience, 16, 739–746, doi: 10.1038/s41561-023-01238-8. (Link to UP News article)
Freisleben, R., J. Jara-Muñoz, D. Melnick, D. Molina, A. Tassara, P. van der Beek, M.R. Strecker, 2023, Deciphering permanent uplift along the Pacific coast of South America through signal analysis of various tectonic processes, Tectonics, 42, e2023TC007815, doi: 10.1029/2023TC007815.
Lemot, F., P.G. Valla, P. van der Beek, M. Jagercikova, S. Niedermann, J. Carcaillet, E.R. Sobel, S. Andò, E. Garzanti, X. Robert, M. Balvay, M. Bernet, J. Glodny, L. Mocochain, 2023, Miocene cave sediments record topographic, erosional and drainage development in the Western European Alps, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 621, 118344, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118344.
Roger, M.* A. de Leeuw, P. van der Beek, L. Husson, E.R. Sobel, J. Glodny, M. Bernet, 2023, Construction of the Ukrainian Carpathian Wedge from low-temperature thermochronology and tectono-stratigraphic analysis, Solid Earth, 14, 153-179, doi: 10.5194/se-14-153-2023.
van der Beek, P., T.F. Schildgen, 2023, Short Communication: age2exhume - A Matlab/Python script to calculate steady-state vertical exhumation rates from thermochronometric ages and application to the Himalaya, Geochronology, 5, 35–49, doi : 10.5194/gchron-5-35-2023.
van der Beek, P.A., Thiede, R.C., Gahalaut, V.K., Schildgen, T.F., 2023, Topographic and thermochronologic constraints on the geometry of the Himalayan décollement and its lateral variations, in: Himalaya, Dynamics of a Giant – volume 1, R. Cattin and J.L. Epard (Eds.), Wiley/ISTE Editions, 151-194, doi: 10.1002/9781394228584.ch6.
2022
Ariagno, C.*, C. Le Bouteiller, P. van der Beek, S. Klotz, 2022, Sediment export in marly badland catchments modulated by frost-cracking intensity, Draix-Bléone Critical Zone Observatory, SE France, Earth Surface Dynamics, 10, 81–96, doi: 10.5194/esurf-10-81-2022.
Cao, K., Y. Tian, P. van der Beek, T. Shen, G. Wang, P. Reiners, M. Bernet, L. Husson, 2022, South-westward growth of plateau surfaces in eastern Tibet, Earth-Science Reviews, 232, 104160, doi: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2022.104160.
Colleps, C.L.#, R.N. McKenzie, P. van der Beek, W.R. Guenthner, M. Sharma, A.R. Nordsvan, D.F. Stockli, Assessing the long-term low-temperature thermal evolution of the central Indian Bundelkhand craton with a complex apatite and zircon (U-Th)/He dataset, American Journal of Science, 322, 1089-1123, doi: 10.2475/10.2022.01.
Schildgen, T.F., P.A. van der Beek, M. D’Arcy, D. Roda-Boluda, E.N. Orr, H. Wittmann, 2022, Quantifying drainage-divide migration from orographic rainfall over geologic timescales: Sierra de Aconquija, southern Central Andes, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 579, 117345, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2021.117345.
Shen, T., G. Wang, P. van der Beek, M. Bernet, Y. Chen, P. Zhang, A. Wang, K. Cao, Impacts of late-Miocene normal faulting on Yarlung Tsangpo River evolution, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 134, 3142–3154, doi: 10.1130/B36210.1.
Zhang, D., K. Cao, X. Yuan, G. Wang, P. van der Beek, 2022, Late Oligocene-early Miocene origin of the First Bend of the Yangtze River explained by thrusting-induced river reorganization. Geomorphology, 411, 108303, doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2022.108303.
2021
Curry, M.E.#, P.A. van der Beek, R.S. Huismans, S.G. Wolf, C. Fillon, J.A. Muñoz, 2021, Spatio-temporal patterns of exhumation of the Pyrenees revealed by inverse thermo-kinematic modeling of a large thermochronologic dataset, Geology, 49, 738–742, doi: 10.1130/G48687.1.
Fillon, C., F. Mouthereau, S. Calassou, R. Pik, N. Bellahsen, C. Gautheron, D. Stockli, M. Mouchené, P. van der Beek, 2021, Post-orogenic exhumation in the western Pyrenees: evidence for extension driven by pre-orogenic inheritance, Journal of the Geological Society London, 178, jgs2020-079, doi: 10.1144/jgs2020-079.
Gérard, B., L. Audin, X. Robert, C. Gautheron, P. van der Beek, M. Bernet, C. Benavente, F. Delgado, 2021, Pliocene river capture and incision of the northern Altiplano: Machu Picchu, Peru, Journal of the Geological Society London, 178, jgs2020-100, doi: 10.1144/jgs2020-100.
Ou, X., A. Replumaz, P. van der Beek, 2021, Contrasting exhumation histories and relief development within the Three Rivers Region (Southeast Tibet), Solid Earth, 12, 563–580, 2021, doi: 10.5194/se-2020-172.
van der Beek, P., 2021, Stressed rocks cause big landslides. Nature Geoscience, 14, 261–262, doi: 10.1038/s41561-021-00748-7 (invited, non-peer reviewed, News & Views article).
Wolf, S., R.S. Huismans, J.-A. Muñoz, M.E. Curry#, P. van der Beek, 2021, From small and cold to large and hot - what controls orogenic growth? Journal of Geophysical Research – Solid Earth, 126, e2020JB02116, doi: 10.1029/2020JB021168.
2020
Govin, G.*, P. van der Beek, Y. Najman, I. Millar, L. Gemignani*, P. Huyghe, G. Dupont-Nivet, M. Bernet, C. Mark, J. Wijbrans, 2020, Early onset and late acceleration of rapid exhumation in the Eastern Himalayan syntaxis, Geology, 48, 1139–1143, doi: 10.1130/G47720.1.
Replumaz, A., M. San José, A. Margirier, P.A. van der Beek, C. Gautheron, P.H. Leloup, X. Ou, C. Kai, G. Wang, Y.-Z. Zhang, P. Valla, M. Balvay, 2020, Tectonic control on rapid Late-Miocene – Quaternary incision of the Mekong River knickzone, Southeast Tibetan Plateau, Tectonics, 39, e2019TC005782, doi: 10.1029/2019TC005782.
Selected publications, 2019 and earlier:
Curry, M.E.#, P.A. van der Beek, R.S. Huismans, S.G. Wolf, J.A. Muñoz, 2019, Evolving paleotopography and lithospheric flexure of the Pyrenean Orogen from 3D flexural modeling and basin analysis, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 515, 26-37, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.03.009.
Erdös, Z.*, R.S. Huismans, P.A van der Beek, 2019, Control of increased sedimentation on orogenic fold-and-thrust belt structure - Insights into the evolution of the Western Alps, Solid Earth, 10, 391-404, doi: 10.5194/se-10-391-2019.
Ghazoui, Z.*, S. Bertrand, K. Vanneste, Y. Yokoyama, J. Nomade, A.P. Gajurel, P.A. van der Beek, 2019, Potentially large post-1505 AD earthquakes in western Nepal revealed by a lake sediment record, Nature Communications, 10: 2258, 1-9, doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-10093-4.
Gemignani, L.*, P.A van der Beek, J. Braun, Y. Najman, M. Bernet, E. Garzanti, J.R. Wijbrans, 2018, Downstream evolution of the thermochronologic age signal in the Brahmaputra catchment (eastern Himalaya): implications for the detrital record of erosion, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 499, 48-61, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2018.07.019.
Govin, G.*, Y. Najman, A. Copley, I. Millar, P.A. van der Beek, P. Huyghe, D. Grujic, J. Davenport, 2018, Timing and mechanism of the rise of the Shillong Plateau in the Himalayan foreland, Geology, 46, 279-282, doi: 10.1130/G39864.1.
Ketcham, R.A., P.A. van der Beek, J. Barbarand, M. Bernet, C. Gautheron, 2018, Reproducibility of thermal history reconstruction from apatite fission-track and (U-Th)/He data, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 19, 2411–2436, doi: 10.1029/2018GC007555.
Schildgen, T.S., P.A. van der Beek, H.D. Sinclair, R.C. Thiede, 2018, Spatial correlation bias in thermochronologically derived late Cenozoic erosion histories, Nature, 559, 89–93, doi: 10.1038/s41586-018-0260-6.
Mouchené, M.*, van der Beek, P.A., Carretier, S., Mouthereau, F., 2017, Autogenic versus allogenic controls on the evolution of a coupled fluvial megafan/mountainous catchment system: numerical modelling and comparison with the Lannemezan megafan system (Northern Pyrenees, France), Earth Surface Dynamics, 5, 125–143, doi: 10.5194/esurf-5-125-2017.
Schwartz, S., C. Gautheron, L. Audin, T. Dumont, J. Nomade, J. Barbarand, R. Pinna-Jamme, P.A. van der Beek, 2017, Foreland exhumation controlled by crustal thickening in the Western Alps, Geology, 45, 139-142, doi: 10.1130/G38561.1.
Vögeli, N.*, Najman, Y., van der Beek, P.A., Huyghe, P., Wynn, P., Govin, G., 2017, Lateral variations in vegetation in the Himalaya since the Miocene and implications for climate evolution, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 471, 1-9, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2017.04.037.
Abrahami, R.*, P.A. van der Beek, P. Huyghe, E. Hardwick, J. Carcaillet, 2016, Decoupling of long-term exhumation and short-term erosion rates in the Sikkim Himalaya, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 433, 76–88, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2015.10.039.
Nocquet, J.M., C. Sue, A. Walpersdorf, T. Tran, N. Lenôtre, P. Vernant, M. Cushing, F. Jouanne, F. Masson, S. Baize, J. Chéry, P.A. van der Beek, 2016, Present-day uplift of the western Alps, Scientific Reports, 6, 28404, doi: 10.1038/srep28404.
van der Beek, P.A., C. Litty, M. Baudin, J. Mercier*, X. Robert, E. Hardwick, 2016, Contrasting tectonically-driven exhumation and incision patterns, western versus central Nepal Himalaya, Geology, 44, 327-330, doi: 10.1130/G37579.1.
Chirouze, F., P. Huyghe, C. Chauvel, P.A. van der Beek, M. Bernet, J.-L. Mugnier, 2015, Stable drainage pattern and variable exhumation in the western Himalaya since the Middle Miocene, Journal of Geology, 123, 1-20, doi: 10.1086/679305.
Fauquette, S., M. Bernet, J.-P. Suc, A.-S. Grosjean, S. Guillot, P.A. van der Beek, S. Jourdan, S.-M. Popescu, G. Jiménez-Moreno, A. Bertini, B. Pittet, P. Tricart, T. Dumont, S. Schwartz, Z. Zheng, E. Roche, G. Pavia, V. Gardien, 2015, Quantifying the Eocene to Pleistocene topographic evolution of the southwestern Alps, France and Italy, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 412, 220-234, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2014.12.036.
Delunel, R.*, P.A. van der Beek, D.L. Bourlès, J. Carcaillet, F. Schlunegger, 2014, Transient sediment supply in a high-altitude Alpine environment evidenced through a 10Be budget of the Etages catchment (French Western Alps), Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 39, 890-899, doi: 10.1002/esp.3494.
Erdös, Z.*, R. Huismans, P.A. van der Beek, 2014, Extensional inheritance and surface processes as controlling factors of mountain belt structure, Journal of Geophysical Research - Solid Earth, 119, 9042-9061, doi: 10.1002/2014JB011408
Husson, L., M. Bernet, S. Guillot, P. Huyghe, J.L. Mugnier, A. Replumaz, X. Robert, P.A. van der Beek, 2014, Dynamic ups and downs of the Himalaya, Geology, 42, 839-842, doi: 10.1130/G36049.1.
Cao K., M. Bernet, G.-C. Wang, P.A. van der Beek, A. Wang, K.-X. Zhang, E. Enkelmann, Focused Pliocene-Quaternary exhumation of the Eastern Pamir domes, western China, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 363, 16–26, 2013.
Chirouze, F., P. Huyghe, P.A. van der Beek, C. Chauvel, T. Chakraborty, G. Dupont-Nivet, M. Bernet, Tectonics, exhumation and drainage evolution of the Eastern Himalaya since 13 Ma from detrital geochemistry and thermochronology, Kameng River Section, Arunachal Pradesh, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 125, 523-538, 2013.
Fillon, C.*, R. Huismans, P.A. van der Beek, Wedge-top sedimentation effects on the growth of fold-and-thrust belts, Geology, 41, 83–86, 2013.
Glotzbach, C. #, P.A. van der Beek, J. Carcaillet, R. Delunel*, Deciphering the driving forces of short-term denudation in glacially impacted landscapes, an example from the Western Alps, Journal of Geophysical Research – Earth Surface, 118, 1491-1515, 2013.
Braun, J., P.A. van der Beek, P. Valla*, X. Robert*, F. Herman, C. Glotzbach#, V. Pedersen, C. Perry#, T. Simon-Labric*, C. Prigent, Quantifying rates of landscape evolution and tectonic processes by thermochronology and numerical modeling of heat transport in the crust using PECUBE, Tectonophysics, 524-525, 1-28, 2012.
Fillon, C.*, P.A. van der Beek, Post-orogenic evolution of the southern Pyrenees: constraints from inverse thermo-kinematic modeling of low-temperature thermochronology data, Basin Research, 24, 418-436, 2012.
Bermudez, M.A.*, P.A. van der Beek, M. Bernet, Asynchronous Miocene–Pliocene exhumation of the central Venezuelan Andes, Geology, 39, 139-142, 2011.
Cederbom, C.E., P.A. van der Beek, F. Schlunegger, H. D. Sinclair, O. Oncken, Rapid, extensive erosion of the North Alpine foreland basin at 5-4 Ma: Climatic, tectonic and geodynamic forcing on the European Alps, Basin Research, 23, 528–550, 2011.
Glotzbach, C.#, M. Bernet, P.A. van der Beek, Detrital thermochronology records changing source areas and steady exhumation in the Western European Alps, Geology, 39, 239–242, 2011.
Glotzbach, C. #, P.A. van der Beek, C. Spiegel, Episodic exhumation of the Mont Blanc massif, Western Alps: constraints from numerical modelling of thermochronology data, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 304, 417-430, 2011.
Robert, X.*, P.A. van der Beek, J. Braun, C. Perry#, J.-L. Mugnier, Control of detachment geometry on lateral variations in exhumation rates in the Himalaya: Insights from low – temperature thermochronology and numerical modeling, Journal of Geophysical Research, 116, B05202, doi: 10.1029/2010jb007893, 2011.
Valla, P. G.*, D. L. Shuster, P. A. van der Beek, Major increase in relief of the European Alps during Mid-Pleistocene glaciations, Nature Geoscience, 4, 688-692, doi: 10.1038/NGEO1242, 2011.
Delunel, R.*, P.A. van der Beek, J. Carcaillet, D.L. Bourlès, Frost-cracking control on catchment denudation rates: Insights from in-situ produced 10Be concentrations in stream sediments (Ecrins-Pelvoux massif, French Western Alps), Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 293, 72-83, 2010.
Valla, P.G.*, P.A. van der Beek, D. Lague, Fluvial incision into bedrock: insights from morphometric analysis and numerical modeling of gorges incising glacial hanging valleys (western Alps, France), Journal of Geophysical Research – Earth Surface, 115, F0210, 2010.
Valla, P.G.*, F. Herman, P.A. van der Beek, J. Braun, Inversion of thermochronological age-elevation profiles to extract independent estimates of denudation and relief history – I: Theory and conceptual model, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 295, 511-522, 2010.
van der Beek, P.A., Valla, P.G.*, F. Herman, J. Braun, C. Persano, K. Dobson, E. Labrin, Inversion of thermochronological age-elevation profiles to extract independent estimates of denudation and relief history – II: Application to the French Western Alps, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 296, 9-22, 2010.
Robert, X.*, P.A. van der Beek, J. Braun, C. Perry#, M. Dubille, J.-L. Mugnier, Assessing Quaternary reactivation of the Main Central Thrust zone (central Nepal Himalaya): New thermochronologic data and numerical modelling, Geology, 37, 731-734, 2009.
van der Beek, P.A., J. Van Melle*, S. Guillot, A. Pêcher, P.W. Reiners, S. Nicolescu, M. Latif, Eocene Tibetan Plateau remnants preserved in the Northwest Himalaya, Nature Geoscience, 2, 364-368, 2009.
Vernon, A.J.*, P.A. van der Beek, H. Sinclair, M. Rahn, Increase in Late Cenozoic denudation of the European Alps confirmed by analysis of a fission track thermochronology database, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 270, 316-329, 2008.
Brocard, G.Y.*, and P.A. van der Beek, Influence of incision rate, rock strength and bedload supply on bedrock river gradients and valley-flat widths: Field-based evidence and calibrations from western Alpine rivers (SE France), in: Tectonics, Climate and Landscape Evolution, Geol. Soc. Am. Spec. Publ. 398, 101-126, 2006.
Bernet, M. #, P.A. van der Beek, R. Pik, P. Huyghe, J.L. Mugnier, E. Labrin, and A. Sculz, Miocene to Recent exhumation of the central Himalaya determined from combined detrital zircon fission-track and U/Pb analysis of Siwalik sediments, western Nepal. Basin Research, 18, 393-412, 2006.
van der Beek, P.A., X. Robert*, J.L. Mugnier, M. Bernet#, P. Huyghe, and E. Labrin, Late Miocene – Recent denudation of the central Himalaya and recycling in the foreland basin assessed by detrital apatite fission-track thermochronology of Siwalik sediments, Nepal, Basin Research, 18, 413-434, 2006.
Brocard, G.Y.*, P.A. van der Beek, D.L. Bourlès, L.L. Siame, and J.-L. Mugnier, Long-term fluvial incision rates and postglacial river relaxation time in the French Western Alps from 10Be dating of alluvial terraces with assessment of inheritance, soil development and wind ablation effects, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 209, 197-214, 2003.
van der Beek, P.A., and P. Bishop, Cenozoic river profile development in the Upper Lachlan catchment (SE Australia) as a test of quantitative fluvial incision models, Journal of Geophysical Research, 108, doi: 10.1029/2002JB002125, 2003.
van der Beek, P.A., Champel, B.*, & Mugnier, J.L., Controls on drainage development in regions of active fault-propagation folding, Geology, 30, 471-474, 2002.
van der Beek, P.A., Summerfield, M.A., Braun, J., Brown, R.W., & Fleming, A., Modelling post-break-up landscape evolution and denudation history across the eastern margin (Drakensberg Escarpment) of southern Africa, Journal of Geophysical Research, 107, 2351, doi: 10.1029/2001JB000744, 2002.
van der Beek, P.A. & Braun, J., Controls on Post-mid-Cretaceous landscape evolution in the Southeastern Highlands of Australia : Insights from numerical surface process models, Journal of Geophysical Research, 104, 4945-4966, 1999.
van der Beek, P.A., Flank uplift and topography at the central Baikal Rift (SE Siberia): A test of kinematic models for continental extension, Tectonics, 16, 122-136, 1997.
Rohrman, M., van der Beek, P.A., Andriessen, P.A.M. & Cloetingh, S., Meso-Cenozoic morphotectonic evolution of southern Norway: Neogene domal uplift inferred from apatite fission‑track thermochronology. Tectonics, 14, 704-718, 1995.
van der Beek, P.A., Cloetingh, S. & Andriessen, P.A.M., Mechanisms of extensional basin formation and vertical motions at rift flanks: Constraints from tectonic modelling and fission-track thermochronology. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 121, 417‑433, 1994.
Post-docs, PhD candidates
Current Post-docs:
Cody Colleps (2021- ): Development of 4He/3He thermochronology; funded by ERC COOLER Advanced grant.
Former Post-docs:
Simone Racano (2022-2024): Geodynamics, tectonics and landscape evolution of the Italian Adriatic coast. Internally funded by UP. Currently Post-doctoral Researcher at Università Roma Tre (Italy).
Maxime Bernard (2021-2023): Development of a thermal-kinematic model including sample-specific thermochronological predictions and coupling with a glacial erosion model; funded by ERC COOLER Advanced grant. Currently Post-doctoral Researcher at the Université de Lausanne (Switzerland).
Maggie Ellis Curry (2017-2019): Coevolution of compressional tectonics and topography: the Pyrenean Orogen; funded by TOTAL COLORS consortium. Currently Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University (USA).
Christoph Glotzbach (2008-2010): Topographic evolution of the European Alps in the Neogene, forced by coupled climatic/tectonic processes; funded by Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). Currently Research Scientist at Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen (Germany).
Claire Perry (2007-2008): Modeling detrital thermochronology data using Pecube; funded by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR). Currently Research Scientist at Natural Resources Canada and Adjunct Professor at the University of Ottawa (Canada).
Matthias Bernet (2004-2006): Exhumation history of the Nepal Himalaya from detrital thermochronology of Siwalik sediments; funded by European Commission Marie Curie fellowship. Currently Associate Professor at Université Grenoble Alpes.
Current PhD candidates:
Ling-Xiao Gong; co-advised with Ed Sobel (Universität Potsdam): Cenozoic exhumation history of the central Tien Shan Mountains (China, Kirghistan); tectonic and climatic controls; funded by China Research Council.
Fujun Wang; co-advised with Ed Sobel (Universität Potsdam): Interaction between tectonics, climate and eroson in the North Pamir - South Tien Shan region; funded by China Research Council.
Isabel Wapenhans; How tectonic uplift rates affect glacial relief development; funded by ERC COOLER Advanced grant.
Former PhD candidates:
Marion Roger (2019-2023); co-advised with Arjan de Leeuw and Laurent Husson (ISTerre Grenoble): Quantifying sediment flux in the Carpathian foreland basin; controls of collision and slab detachment; funded by French ministry of Higher education and IDEX Grenoble.
Coline Ariagno (2019-2022) ; co-advised with Caroline le Bouteiller (INRAe Grenoble): Monitoring and modeling physical weathering of marls ans its effect on erosion, Draix-Bléone CZO; funded by INRAe and Agence Nationale de la Recherche. Currently Post-doctoral researcher at ISTerre Grenoble, France.
Zakaria Ghazoui (2013-2018); co-advised with Sebastien Bertrand (Ghent University): Late Quaternary seismicity and climate in the Himalaya of western Nepal (funding EU-iTECC). Currently with DEME Marine Technologies, Antwerpen (Belgium). Inside Himalayan Lakes.
Lorenzo Gemignani (2013-2018); co-advised with Jan Wijbrans (VU Amsterdam) and Yani Najman (U. Lancaster): Extracting erosion and exhumation patterns from detrital thermochronology: an example from the eastern Himalaya (funding EU-iTECC). Currently assistant professor (tenure-track) at Università di Bologna, Italy.
Gwladys Govin (2013-2017); co-advised with Yani Najman (U. Lancaster) and Pascale Huyghe (ISTerre Grenoble): Tectonic-erosion interactions: Insights from the paleo-drainage of the Brahmaputra River (funding EU-iTECC). Deceased.
Natalie Vögeli (2013-2016); co-advised with Pascale Huyghe (ISTerre Grenoble) and Yani Najman (U. Lancaster): The influence of climate on the sedimentary record in the Himalaya (funding EU-iTECC). Currently project leader with MaterialTechnik am Bau AG, Schinznach, Switzerland.
Margaux Mouchené (2012-2016); co-advised with Frederic Mouthereau (Université Toulouse): Development and fluvial incision of the Miocene Lannemazan Megafan, northern Pyrenean foreland. Currently post-doctoral researcher at Laboratoire d'Informatique de Grenoble (LIG) and ISTerre, Grenoble, France.
Rachel Abrahami (2011-2015); co-advised with Pascale Huyghe (ISTerre Grenoble): Controls on the evolution of fluvial megafans in the central/eastern Himalaya. Currently independent researcher and science communicator, Lyon, France.
Zoltan Erdös (2010-2014); co-advised with Ritske Huismans (University of Bergen): Coupled surface process and tectonic modelling of extension‐inversion tectonics in the Pyrenees. Currently post-doctoral researcher at GFZ Potsdam, Germany.
Jonathan Mercier (2010-2014); co-advised with Jean Braun (ISTerre Grenoble): Structure and dynamics of orogenic wedges: a multidisciplinary approach to the Himalayan case study. Currently at the Centre de Géologie de l’Oisans, Bourg d’Oisans, France.
Charlotte Fillon (2008-2012); co-advised with Ritske Huismans (University of Bergen): Spatial and temporal variations in Cenozoic exhumation of the Pyrenean-Cantabrian mountain belt. Currently with TOTAL Exploration & Production, Pau, France.
Pierre Valla (2007-2011): Numerical modeling of relief development in response to Quaternary glaciation in the western Alps. Currently CNRS researcher, ISTerre Grenoble, France.
Thibaud Simon-Labric (2006-2010); co-advised with C. Teyssier (University of Lausanne / University of Minneapolis): Thermal, tectonic and erosional controls on thermochronology data from magmatic arcs – Cascades range and Central America (joint PhD University of Lausanne / University of Grenoble). Currently at the Centre de Géologie de l’Oisans, Bourg d’Oisans, France.
Romain Delunel (2006-2010): Relief development following rapid (glacial-interglacial) climate change: the external crystalline massifs of the western Alps. Currently CNRS researcher, EVS Lyon, France.
Romain Beucher (2006-2009); co-advised with Pierre Tricart (LGCA Grenoble): Neogene Evolution of the southwestern Alps (French-Italian border): An integrated seismotectonic and thermochrono-logical approach. Currently Team Leader, Model Evaluation and Diagnostics, ACCESS-NRI, Canberra, Australia.
Mauricio Bermùdez (2006-2009); co-advised with Matthias Bernet (LGCA Grenoble): Cenozoic exhumation patterns across the Venezuelan Andes: insights from fission-track thermochronology. Currently lecturer at Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC), Tunja (Colombia).
Jérémie van Melle (2005-2008); co-advised with Arnaud Pêcher (LGCA Grenoble): Crustal exhumation and morphological variability in the northwestern Himalaya: post-5 Ma structural and thermochronological history. Currently with KAENA Consulting, St. Vincent de Mercuze, France.
Xavier Robert (2005-2008): Role of erosion in the fault activation sequence and dynamics of the frontal Himalayan prism; an approach using thermochronology and numerical modelling. Currently Researcher at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Grenoble, France.
Antoine Vernon (2004-2008); co-advised with Hugh Sinclair (University of Edinburgh): Pliocene exhumation of the European Alps: differentiation of climatic versus tectonic controls (joint PhD University of Edinburgh / University of Grenoble). Currently with Shell Renewables and Energy Solutions, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Behnam Oveisi (2003-2007); co-advised with Jerome Lavé (LGCA Grenoble): Differential uplift and river incision in the Zagros folded belt, Iran. Currently independent research geologist, Aurora, Ontario, Canada.
Bénédicte Champel-Duffait (2000-2004); co-advised with Jean-Louis Mugnier (LGCA Grenoble): Along-strike tectonic variation in the Himalayan orogen; a link with along-strike climatic variation? A numerical modeling study. Currently at the Commissariat pour l’Energie Atomique et Alternative (CEA), Grenoble, France.
Gilles Brocard (1998-2002); co-advised with Jean-Louis Mugnier (LGCA Grenoble) and Didier Bourlès (CEREGE Aix-en-Provence): calibration of fluvial transport laws and time-scales of fluvial incision from an analysis of western Alpine rivers, SE France. Currently Professor at the University of Lyon - Lumière, France.
Teaching
I am currently teaching the following courses at the University of Potsdam:
In the Bachelor Geosciences:
- GEW-B-WP01: Vertiefung Geologie I / GEW-B-WP03: Vertiefung Geologie III - Structural Geology and Tectonics (6 credit points, summer semester)
This course provides an overview of the theoretical foundations of Structural Geology and provides students with basic knowledge of the main tectonic structures and the associated forces responsible for creating them. Internal link to Moodle page
In the Master Geosciences:
- GEW-MC02 - Tectonics and Geodynamics (Core module; 6 credit points, winter semester)
This module aims to familiarize students with current concepts concerning the structure and mechanical behavior of the lithosphere, in relation to its thermal structure and rheology. Covered subjects include: the forces driving plate tectonics, the rheology of the lithosphere, the dynamics of orogenic processes and numerical modeling of lithospheric deformation, and the coupling with mantle dynamics and surface processes. Internal link to Moodle page
- GEW-MF-01 - Earth Surface Dynamics (Advanced module; 12 credit points, winter and summer semester)
This course deals with the dynamics of Earth-surface processes: erosion, transport and deposition on slopes, by rivers and glaciers. Physical and mathematical models describing these processes are presented and analyzed using available field observations. This module also provides an introduction to the field of active tectonics and the methods used to quantify active deformation of the Earth's crust on seismic to geologic time scales. In particular, modern geomorphological methods for assessing tectonic activity and quantifying its rates in areas of contractional, strike-slip and extensional tectonics are studied. In addition, the course examines the couplings between tectonics and climate-driven surface processes in landscape evolution. Topics are explored in depth through the reading of scientific papers, followed by group discussion and presentation of research topics to groups of students. A field exercise in a tectonically active region allows theoretical concepts to be put into practice. Internal link to Moodle pages for the Earth Surface Processesand the Active Tectonics parts of the module.
- GEW-MF04 - Specialization Module-Theory and Applications: Thematic Field School (Advanced module; 6 credit points, winter or summer semester)
A thematic field course on a specific sedimentary, tectonic, and/or geomorphological topic of study allows students to learn the advanced application of field methods in order to interpret complex geological conditions and acquire a deeper understanding of complex interrelationships in the Earth system. Internal link to Moodle pages for the 2022 Thematic Field School in Romania (joint with Université Grenoble Alpes) and the 2024 Thematic Field School in the Pyrenees (joint with Université Rennes I).
- GEW-MM01 - Topics in Earth System Science: Seminar General Geology (Compulsory module; 6 credit points, winter and summer semester)
During the semester, we hold a weekly group seminar, known as the SMURF seminar. Here is the link to the current seminar programme.
- If you are interested in doing your Bachelor's or Master's project in a subject in Tectonics and/or Surface Processes, please do not hesitate to contact me.