DR. SCOTT JESS
Assistant Professor in Earth Surface Processes at Washington State University
BIO
I am currently an Assistant Professor in Earth Surface processes at Washington State University. In 2018 I graduated from the University of Aberdeen with PhD in Geology, following a BSc in Earth Science from the University of Glasgow. From there I worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Calgary and University of Toronto Mississauga.
I am principally interested in how mountains form through the coupling of tectonic, climate and surface processes, especially in extensional environments. Additionally, I am working on improving analytical methods in the field of thermochronology and analysing complex age datasets.
EMPLOYMENT
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY
August 2023 - present
I now an Assistant Professor in Earth Surface Processes currently building a fission-track lab in the and working on a variety of new projects.
POSTDOCTORAL ASSOCIATE, UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO MISSISSAUGA
November 2021 - August 2023
My role is to conduct research studying how the earth's surface is shaped. Further work includes the supervision of postgraduate students, manuscript publication and the presentation of work at conferences.
POSTDOCTORAL ASSOCIATE, UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY
January 2019 - November 2021
My role is to conduct research into fission track methodological experimentation and advancement, and the application of low-temperature thermochronology to investigate the evolution of the Canadian Cordillera. Further work includes the supervision of postgraduate students, manuscript publication and the presentation of work at conferences.
PUBLICATIONS
JESS, S., ENKELMANN, E. and MATTHEWS, W. 2023. The Effect of Sediment Storage in Glaciated Catchments on Multimineral Detrital Geochronology: Deciphering Conflicting Zircon and Apatite U‐Pb Dates. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 128(1), p.e2022JF006738.
DAMANT, K., ENKELMANN, E. AND JESS, S. 2023. Prolonged post-orogenic extension in the southeastern Canadian Cordillera: Miocene reactivation of the Columbia River Fault. Tectonophysics, p.229763.
JOHNS-BUSS, E. G., BERANEK, LUKE., ENKELMANN, E., JESS, S. and MATTHEWS, W. 2023. Exhumation history and Early Cretaceous paleogeography of the Newfoundland margin revealed by detrital zircon U–Pb and fission-track studies of syn-rift Hibernia Formation strata. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 148, p.106055.
PEACE, A. L. and JESS. 2022. Microdrones in field-based structural geology: a photogrammetry and fracture quantification case study from the North Mountain Basalt, Nova Scotia, Canada. Drone Systems and Applications, 11, pp.1-15.
JESS, S., ENKELMANN, E. and MATTHEWS, W. 2022 . Why are the Appalachians high? New insights from detrital apatite laser ablation (U-Th-Sm)/He dating. Earth and Planetary Science Letters.
SCHIFFER, C., PEACE, A., JESS, S. and RONDENAY, S. 2022. The crustal structure in the Northwest Atlantic region from receiver function inversion – Implications for basin dynamics and magmatism. Tectonophysics, doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2022.229235.
FRASER, K., ENKELMANN, E., JESS, S., GILBERT, H and GRIECO, R 2021. Resolving the Cenozoic History of rock Exhumation along the central Rocky Mountain Trench using apatite low-temperature thermochronology. Tectonics, doi.org/10.1029/2021TC006847.
JESS, S., ENKELMANN, E., GRASBY, S.E. and FRASER, K. 2021. Determining the longevity of hydrothermal systems using thermochronology and thermal modelling. JGR: Earth Surface, doi.org/10.1029/2021JF006286
ARKLE, J., WEBER, J., ENKELMANN, E., OWEN, L., GOVERS, R., JESS, S., DENISON, C., O’SULLIVAN, P. B., and DONELICK, R. A. 2021. Exhumation of the Costal Metamorphic Belt above the Subduction-to-Transform Transition, in the Southeast Caribbean Plate Corner. Tectonics. doi.org/10.1029/2020TC006414
JESS, S., KOEHN, D., FOX, M., ENKELMANN, E., SACHAU, T. and AANYU, K., 2020. Paleogene initiation of the Western Branch of the East African Rift: The uplift history of the Rwenzori Mountains, Western Uganda. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 552, p.116593. doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116593
JESS, S.A., PEACE, A. and SCHIFFER, C., 2020. Sediment supply on the West Greenland passive margin: redirection of a large pre-glacial drainage system. Journal of the Geological Society. doi.org/10.1144/jgs2020-028
STEPHENSON, R., SCHIFFER, C., PEACE, A., NIELSEN, S and JESS, S.A. 2020, Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic basin inversion and paleo-stress fields in the North Atlantic-western Alpine-Tethys realm: implications for intraplate tectonics. Earth Science Reviews. doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2020.103252
JESS, S., STEPHENSON, R., ROBERTS, D.H. and BROWN, R., 2019. Reply to: Thermal history solutions from thermochronology must be governed by geological relationships: A comment on Jess et al.(2019). Geomorphology, p.106971.
JESS, S.A., STEPHENSON, R.A., BROWN, R. and NIELSEN, S.B., (2019), The source of topography across the Cumberland Peninsula, Baffin Island, Arctic Canada: differential exhumation of a North Atlantic rift flank. Journal of the Geological Society, 176(6), pp.1093-1106.
JESS, S.A., STEPHENSON, R.A., ROBERTS, D.H. and BROWN, R. 2019. Jess, S., Stephenson, R., Roberts, D.H. and Brown, R., 2019. Differential erosion of a Mesozoic rift flank: Establishing the source of topography across Karrat, central West Greenland. Geomorphology, 334, pp.138-150.
JESS, S.A., STEPHENSON, R. and BROWN, R., 2018. Evolution of the central West Greenland margin and the Nuussuaq Basin: Localised basin uplift along a stable continental margin proposed from thermochronological data. Basin Research, 30(6), pp.1230-1246.
DEMPSTER, T. and JESS, S.A., 2015. Ikaite pseudomorphs in Neoproterozoic Dalradian slates record Earth’s coldest metamorphism. Journal of the Geological Society, 172(4), pp.459-464.
Presentations
Peace, A., Schiffer, C., Jess, S., and Phethean, J. Fault reactivation and halokinesis: an example from the Penobscot 3D seismic volume, offshore Nova Scotia, Canada. To be given at: EGU 2022.
Jess, S., Enkelmann, E. and Matthews, W. Invited talk. Laser ablation (U-Th-Sm)/He dating: advancing detrital thermochronology and geochronology. To be given at: GAC-MAC Halifax 2022.
Jess, S., Gröger, H., Hendriks, B., Peace, A.L. and Schiffer, S. Oral presentation. Compilation of apatite fission-track data from across the North Atlantic: regional trends and interpretations. GSA Connects 2021.
Jess, S., Enkelmann, E. and Matthews, W. Oral presentation. Laser ablation (U-Th-Sm)/He dating of detrital apatite in the Appalachians: a new analytical tool for resolving regional landscape evolution. GSA Connects 2021.
Peace, A., Schiffer, C., Jess, S. and Jordan Phethean. Poster. Depth-dependent inversion of normal faults: Structural analysis of the Penobscot 3D seismic volume, offshore Nova Scotia. EGU 2021, Online.
Jess, S. (2021; invited), McMaster University, SEES Seminar Series: The ups and downs of extensional tectonics.
Jess, S., Koehn, D., Fox, M., Enkelmann, E., Sachau, T. and Aanyu, K. (invited). Poster. Thermal history modelling in extensional settings: the Rwenzori Mountains of the East African Rift. AGU 2020, Online.
Jess, S., Peace, A. and Schiffer, C. Oral presentation. Sediment supply on the West Greenland passive margin: redirection of a large pre-glacial drainage system. GSA 2020, Online.
Schiffer, C., Rondenay, S., Nielsen, S.B., Peace, A. and Jess, S. Oral presentation. Crustal structure of the West Greenland Igneous Province: implications for tectono-magmatic evolution. GSA 2020, Online.
Johns-Buss, E., Beranek, L., Enkelmann, E., Jess, S. and Matthews, W. Oral presentation. Detrital zircon U-Pb and fission-track double-dating studies of Lower Cretaceous Hibernia Formation strata in the Jeanne d’Arc basin, offshore Newfoundland. GSA 2020, Online.
Jess, S., Enkelmann, E. and Matthews, W. (2020). Oral presentation. Multi-method dating of individual apatite and zircon grains: faster and less expensive methods for detrital studies. Geoconvention 2020, Online.
Jess, S., Enkelmann, E. and Matthews, W. (2020). Poster. A new and innovative double dating technique suitable for porphyritic system exploration and development. Roundup 2020, Vancouver, Canada.
Stephenson, R.A., Schiffer, C., Jess, S.A., Peace, A. and Nielsen, S. (2019). Oral presentation. Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic intraplate basin inversion and paleo-stress fields in the North Atlantic-western Alpine-Tethys realm. EGU 2019, Vienna, Austria.
Jess, S.A., Stephenson, R.A., Roberts, D.H. and Brown, R. (2019). Oral presentation. Differential erosion of a Mesozoic rift flank: establishing the source of anomalous topography across Karrat, central West Greenland. In: GAC-MAC-IAH 2019, Québec, Canada.
Jess, S.A., Stephenson, R.A., Brown, R. and Roberts, D.H. (2018). Oral presentation. Anomalous elevated topography along passive continental margins: a case study from central West Greenland applying apatite fission track and apatite (U-Th)/He data. In: 16th International conference on thermochronology, Quedlinburg, Germany.
Jess, S.A., Stephenson, R.A., Brown, R. and Roberts, D.H. (2018). Oral presentation. Landscape evolution of Northern Uummannaq, central West Greenland: differential erosion of a Mesozoic rift flank. In: EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 20, p. 3933), Vienna, Austria.
Stephenson, R.A., Jess, S.A., Peace, A., Nielsen, S.B., Schiffer, C., Stoker, M.S. and Doré, A., (2018). Poster. A review of Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic intraplate basin inversion in the North Atlantic-western Tethys realm. In: EGU General Assembly Conference, Vienna, Austria.
Jess, S., Stephenson, R.A. and Brown, R. (2017). Oral presentation. The Thermal Evolution of the Baffin Island Continental Margin: An Integrated apatite fission track and apatite (U-Th)/He study. In: AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, New Orleans, USA.
Jess, S., Stephenson, R.A. and Brown, R. (2016). Oral presentation. The evolution of Baffin Island: an integrated apatite fission track and apatite (U-Th)/He study. In: 15th International conference on thermochronology, Maresias, Brazil.
Jess, S., Stephenson, R.A. and Brown, R. (2016). Poster. Cenozoic uplift on the West Greenland margin: active sedimentary basins in quiet Archean terranes. In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 18, p. 6391).
FUNDING
THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY, ELSPETH MATTHEWS FUND
April 2021
£1893 to study the longevity of hot springs in British Columbia.
DAAD, SHORT-TERM RESEARCH GRANT
February 2021
€2575 for a research exchange to Universität Tübingen.
THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY, DANIEL PIDGEON FUND
April 2019
£1400 to carry out (U-Th)/He analysis on samples from the Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda.
NERC CDT IN OIL AND GAS STUDENTSHIP
October 2014 – October 2018
£71,436 to undertake four years of PhD Research at the University of Aberdeen.
NERC CDT IN OIL AND GAS RESEARCH TRAIN SUPPORT GRANT
October 2014 – October 2018
£20,000 to support the training and research of PhD student as part of the NERC CDT in Oil and Gas.
EDUCATION
PHD, UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN
October 2014 - September 2018
Thesis Title: Resolving the timing of major erosion events along the West Greenland-Baffin-Bylot continental margins utilising low-temperature thermo-chronology.
BSC, UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW
October 2010 - June 2014
Courses: Advanced Sequence Stratigraphy, Orogens and Basins, Petroleum Geology, Macro-geomorphology, Tectonic Geomorphology, Isotope Geology, Geophysics, Digital Geoscience, Economic Minerals, Igneous Petrology & Geochemistry, Major Earth Processes, Metamorphic Petrology, Sedimentary Geology, Stratigraphy, Structural Geology, Engineering Earth Science
CONTACT
Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences,
University of Toronto Mississauga,
3359 Mississauga Rd,
Mississauga,
ON L5L 1C6