SelectedWorks - Brittany D. Brand

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Selected Works of Brittany D. Brand

Associate Professor, Department of Geosciences

Dr. Brittany D. Brand is a volcanologist who came to the geosciences faculty at Boise State University in 2013 from the University of Washington, where she was a research scientist and lecturer. She has a Ph.D. in Geology from Arizona State University, where her dissertation title was "Mafic Phreatomagmatic Volcanism and Density Current Dynamics", an M.S. in Geology from Boise State University, and a B.S. in Geology from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Brand has a wide range of research interests including magmatic processes, eruption dynamics and volcanic hazard assessment. The foundation of her research is field-based observation and measurement, and fieldwork has taken her to New Zealand, Iceland, Italy, Chile, and the Canary Islands, as well as throughout the western United States. She explores pyroclastic transport mechanisms in both small (phreatomagmatic) and large explosive eruptions with the overall goal of advancing our knowledge of and ability to assess the hazards related to these dangerous phenomena.

Dr. Brand also works to bridge the gap between science and society through outreach and education. She is active in research projects that investigates ways to motivate preparedness actions for natural hazards. 

Works
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About Brittany D. Brand

Dr. Brittany D. Brand is a volcanologist who came to the geosciences faculty at Boise State University in 2013 from the University of Washington, where she was a research scientist and lecturer. She has a Ph.D. in Geology from Arizona State University, where her dissertation title was "Mafic Phreatomagmatic Volcanism and Density Current Dynamics", an M.S. in Geology from Boise State University, and a B.S. in Geology from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Brand has a wide range of research interests including magmatic processes, eruption dynamics and volcanic hazard assessment. The foundation of her research is field-based observation and measurement, and fieldwork has taken her to New Zealand, Iceland, Italy, Chile, and the Canary Islands, as well as throughout the western United States. She explores pyroclastic transport mechanisms in both small (phreatomagmatic) and large explosive eruptions with the overall goal of advancing our knowledge of and ability to assess the hazards related to these dangerous phenomena.

Dr. Brand also works to bridge the gap between science and society through outreach and education. She is active in research projects that investigates ways to motivate preparedness actions for natural hazards. 

Articles (29)

Thermal Transient PDC Behavior Induced by Topographic Drops: A Test Case at Mt. St. Helens, USA (Matteo Trolese, Matteo Cerminara, Guido Giordano, et al.) Earth and Planetary Science Letters (2024)

Topography plays an important yet uncertain role in modulating the temporal and spatial evolution of the internal structure of pyroclastic density currents (PDCs). Understanding such changes is critical to characterize PDC transport regimes and their ...

Advances in Our Understanding of Pyroclastic Current Behavior from the 1980 Eruption Sequence of Mount St. Helens Volcano (Washington), USA (Brittany D. Brand and Aaron A. Marshall) Bulletin of Volcanology (2023)

This review summarizes what the volcanology community has learned thus far from studying the deposits of pyroclastic currents (PCs) from the 1980 eruption sequence at Mount St. Helens. The review includes mass flow events during ...

Residents’ Information Seeking Behavior and Protective Action for Earthquake Hazards in the Portland Oregon Metropolitan Area (Carson C. MacPherson-Krutsky, Michael K. Lindell and Brittany D. Brand) Risk Analysis (2023)

Though significant research exists on earthquake hazard adjustment adoption more generally, research focused on how information seeking influences planned or actual preparedness behavior is rare, limiting our understanding of how information seeking translates into preparedness. ...

Autobrecciation and Fusing of Mafic Magma Preceding Explosive Eruptions (Aaron A. Marshall, Michael Manga, Brittany D. Brand, et al.) Geology (2022)

Bubble and crystal textures evolve during magma ascent, altering properties that control ascent such as permeability and viscosity. Eruption style results from feedbacks between ascent, bubble nucleation and growth, microlite crystallization, and gas loss, all ...

From Information to Public Preparedness in the Cascadia Subduction Zone: Examining Risk Communication Outcomes in Metropolitan Portland, OR (Carson C. MacPherson-Krutsky, Brittany D. Brand and Michael K. Lindell) Earthquake Spectra (2022)

A Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) earthquake will cause widespread damage along the Pacific Northwest (PNW) coast of the United States. It is, therefore, crucial to understand how to reduce future impacts across this region and ...

Mafic Explosive Volcanism at Llaima Volcano: 3D X-Ray Microtomography Reconstruction of Pyroclasts to Constrain Shallow Conduit Processes (Pedro Valdivia, Aaron A. Marshall, Brittany D. Brand, et al.) Bulletin of Volcanology (2022)

Mafic volcanic activity is dominated by effusive to mildly explosive eruptions. Plinian and ignimbrite-forming mafic eruptions, while rare, are also possible; however, the conditions that promote such explosivity are still being explored. Eruption style is ...

The Mafic Curacautín Ignimbrite of Llaima Volcano, Chile (Aaron A. Marshall, Brittany D. Brand, Jade M. Bowers, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2022)

Mafic volcanism accounts for 80% of magmas erupted on Earth. Although the majority of these eruptions are effusive to Strombolian and fountain-fed, large explosive mafic eruptions do occur. This work uses the deposits and pyroclast ...

Basaltic Phreatomagmatic Fissure at 71 Gulch Part 2: Unusual Pyroclasts from Sediment Magma Mingling and Melting (Alison Graettinger, K. L. Bennis, B. Brand, et al.) Bulletin of Volcanology (2020)

The behavior of magma as it encounters unconsolidated sediment can be studied in fortuitous exposures of incised volcanic systems to help determine the conditions that control the transport, arrest, or mingling of that magma in ...

Decoding Pyroclastic Density Current Flow Direction and Shear Conditions in the Flow Boundary Zone via Particle-Fabric Analysis (P.J. Zrelak, Nicholas M. Pollock, Brittany D. Brand, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2020)

One of the greatest challenges in volcanology is extracting information from volcanic deposits that inform the conditions at the time of emplacement. Here we explore particle-shape fabric within samples from the column-collapse pyroclastic density current ...

Does Updating Natural Hazard Maps to Reflect Best Practices Increase Viewer Comprehension of Risk? (Carson C. MacPherson-Krutsky, Brittany D. Brand and Michael K. Lindell) International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (2020)

In this study, we examine whether updating an interactive hazard map using recommendations from the literature improves user map comprehension. Analyses of experimental data collected from 75 university students revealed that map comprehension scores were ...

The Community Outreach Model of Service-Learning: A Case Study of Active Learning and Service-Learning in a Natural Hazards, Vulnerability, and Risk Class (Brittany D. Brand, Kara Brascia and Margaret Sass) Higher Learning Research Communication (2019)

The popularity of service learning is increasing, especially at a time when college students want to make a greater impact in their communities. However, service learning has not been extensively assessed in courses based in ...

Inferring Pyroclastic Density Current Flow Conditions Using Syn-Depositional Sedimentary Structures (Nicholas M. Pollock, Brittany D. Brand, Peter J. Rowley, et al.) Bulletin of Volcanology (2019)

The processes occurring in the basal region of concentrated pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) influence the mobility, runout distance, and damage potential of a current, but directly observing these processes is extremely difficult. Instead, we must ...

Lava, Ash Flows, Mudslides and Nasty Gases: Good Reasons to Respect Volcanoes (Brittany Brand) The Conversation (2018)

Volcanoes are beautiful and awe-inspiring, but the ongoing eruption of Kilauea on Hawaii’s Big Island is showing how dangerous these events can be. So far this event has destroyed dozens of homes and displaced hundreds ...

Estimation of Porosity and Water Saturation in Dual-Porosity Pyroclastic Deposits from Joint Analysis of Compression, Shear, and Electromagnetic Velocities (Andrew C. Gase, John H. Bradford and Brittany D. Brand) Geophysics (2018)

In situ measurements of porosity and water saturation of pyroclastic deposits have the potential to improve interpretations of geology and hydrology in volcanic regions, and to provide more accurate estimates of dense rock equivalent for ...

Diverse Eruptive Activity Revealed by Acoustic and Electromagnetic Observations of the 14 July 2013 Intense Vulcanian Eruption of Tungurahua Volcano, Ecuador (J. F. Anderson, J. B. Johnson, A. L. Steele, et al.) Geophysical Research Letters (2018)

During the powerful July 2013 eruption of Tungurahua volcano, Ecuador, we recorded exceptionally high amplitude, long‐period infrasound (1,600‐Pa peak‐to‐peak amplitude, 5.5‐s period) on sensors within 2km of the vent alongside electromagnetic signals from volcanic lightning ...

Evidence of Erosional Self-Channelization of Pyroclastic Density Currents Revealed by Ground-Penetrating Radar Imaging at Mount St. Helens, Washington (USA) (Andrew C. Gase, Brittany D. Brand and John H. Bradford) Geophysical Research Letters (2017)

The causes and effects of erosion are among the least understood aspects of pyroclastic density current (PDC) dynamics. Evidence is especially limited for erosional self-channelization, a process whereby PDCs erode a channel that confines the ...

Household Preparedness Motivation in Lahar Hazard Zones: Assessing the Adoption of Preparedness Behaviors Among Laypeople and Response Professionals in Communities Downstream from Mount Baker and Glacier Peak (USA) Volcanoes (Kimberley A. Corwin, Brittany D. Brand, Monica L. Hubbard, et al.) Journal of Applied Vocanology (2017)

As the number of people living at risk from volcanic hazards in the U.S. Pacific Northwest grows, more detailed studies of household preparedness in at-risk communities are needed to develop effective mitigation, response, and recovery ...

The Controls and Consequences of Substrate Entrainment by Pyroclastic Density Currents at Mount St Helens, Washington (USA) (N. M. Pollock, B. D. Brand and O. Roche) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2016)

Evidence in the deposits from the May 18, 1980 eruption at Mount St Helens demonstrates that pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) produced during the afternoon of the eruption became intermittently erosive. Using detailed componentry and granulometry ...

Topographic Controls on Pyroclastic Density Current Dynamics: Insight from 18 May 1980 Deposits at Mount St. Helens, Washington (USA) (Brittany D. Brand, Sylvana Bendaña, Stephen Self, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2016)

Our ability to interpret the deposits of pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) is critical for understanding the transport and depositional processes that control PDC dynamics. This paper focuses on the influence of slope on flow dynamics ...

Where Were You When the Mountain Blew? Remembering the Eruption of Mount St Helens (Brittany Brand) The Conversation (2015)

May 18, 1980. On that fateful day, Mt St Helens Volcano in Washington exploded violently after two months of intense earthquake activity and intermittent, relatively weak eruptions, causing the worst volcanic disaster in the recorded ...

Chile’s Calbuco Volcano Erupts Without Warning. What Can We Expect Next? (Brittany Brand) The Conversation (2015)

Around 5:00 pm local time on April 22, scientists at Southern Andean Volcano Observatory in Chile began picking up volcanic earthquakes at the Calbuco volcano. A disturbingly short 60 minutes later, the volcano was in ...

A Combined Field and Numerical Approach to Understanding Dilute Pyroclastic Density Current Dynamics and Hazard Potential: Auckland Volcanic Field, New Zealand (Brittany D. Brand, Darren Gravley, Amanda Clarke, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2014)

The most dangerous and deadly hazards associated with phreatomagmatic eruption in the Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF; Auckland, New Zealand) are those related to volcanic base surges - dilute, ground-hugging, particle laden currents with dynamic pressures ...

Dynamics of Pyroclastic Density Currents: Conditions That Promote Substrate Erosion and Self-Channelization - Mount St Helens, Washington (USA) (Brittany D. Brand, Chelsea Mackaman-Lofland, Nicholas M. Pollock, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2014)

The May 18th, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens (MSH) produced multiple pyroclastic density currents (PDCs), burying the area north of the volcano under 10s of meters of deposits. Detailed measurements of recently exposed strata ...

Sequential Fragmentation / Transport Theory, Pyroclast Size-Density Relationships, and the Emplacement Dynamics of Pyroclastic Density Currents – A Case Study on the Mt. St. Helens (USA) 1980 Eruption (Chelsea Mackaman-Lofland, Brittany D. Brand, Jacopo Taddeucci, et al.) Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2014)

Pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) are the most dangerous hazard associated with explosive volcanic eruptions. Despite recent advancements in the general understanding of PDC dynamics, limited direct observation and/or outcrop scarcity often hinder the interpretation of ...

Lunar Cold Spots: Granular Flow Features and Extensive Insulating Materials Surrounding Young Craters (Joshua L. Bandfield, Eugenie Song, Paul O. Hayne, et al.) Icarus (2014)

Systematic temperature mapping and high resolution images reveal a previously unrecognized class of small, fresh lunar craters. These craters are distinguished by near-crater deposits with evidence for lateral, ground-hugging transport. More distal, highly insulating surfaces ...