Contact 
Office Marine Science: 310 Castle Street, room 150, Geology: room GN1
Tel Marine Science +64 3 479 5732, Geology +64 3 479 7505
Emailchristina.riesselman@otago.ac.nz
Academic qualifications
BA (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)
PhD (Stanford University)
Research interests
- Cenozoic paleoceanography and paleoclimate
- Antarctic climate evolution
- Micropaleontology (diatoms)
- Geochemical proxies of paleoenvironmental change
I am a paleoceanographer with a focus on Southern Ocean response to changing climate. My research uses stable isotope geochemistry and diatom micropaleontology in marine sediments to examine the evolution of the Antarctic cryosphere through the Cenozoic. In support of these aims, I also participate in collaborative investigations into the modern controls on phytoplankton community structure. This modern-process research underscores the role of biogenic marine sedimentation as a uniquely sensitive recorder of past conditions, both geochemically and from an assemblage-based perspective.
I am also a member of the Coastal People: Southern Skies collaboration that connects communities with world-leading, cross-discipline research to rebuild coastal ecosystems.
Coastal People: Southern Skies
Examining the sediment-water interface aboard the RVIB Nathanial B. Palmer. Photo credit: R Stevens.
Courses
- EAOS111 Earth and Ocean Science
- MARI 112 Marine Biology: The Living Ocean
- GEOL 262/GEOL 362 Geochemistry
- GEOL 302 Independent Project
- GEOL 427
- MARI 431 Antarctic and Southern Ocean Science
Postgraduate students
Jacob Anderson - Thesis Title (PhD): Determining Antarctica's terrestrial climate history from microbial populations in permafrost