World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!

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Earth Science

D-Index
58
Citations
11433
World Ranking
2172
National Ranking
933

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2019 - Fellow of American Geophysical Union (AGU)
  • 2014 - Young Scientist Award (Donath Medal), The Geological Society of America

Overview

Francis A. Macdonald is affiliated with the University of California, Santa Barbara in the United States. Their research primarily focuses on Earth and Planetary Sciences, with a significant body of work spanning related subfields such as Geophysics, Paleontology, Atmospheric Science, Geology, and Artificial Intelligence.

The scientist's main research topics include Geological and Geochemical Analysis, Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils, Geology and Paleoclimatology Research, Geochemistry and Geologic Mapping, Geochemistry and Elemental Analysis, earthquake and tectonic studies, and High-pressure geophysics and materials.

Macdonald's recent publications demonstrate active engagement in topics related to Earth's evolutionary history and geochemical cycles:

  • The tempo of Ediacaran evolution, 2021, Science Advances
  • A lithium-isotope perspective on the evolution of carbon and silicon cycles, 2021, Nature
  • U-Pb and Re-Os geochronology tracks stratigraphic condensation in the Sturtian snowball Earth aftermath, 2020, Geology
  • Emergence of the Southeast Asian islands as a driver for Neogene cooling, 2020, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Diachronous development of Great Unconformities before Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth, 2020, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Frequent coauthors collaborating with Macdonald include:

  • Nicholas L. Swanson-Hysell
  • Adrian Tasistro-Hart
  • Rebecca M. Flowers
  • Eliel S.C. Anttila
  • Eben B. Hodgin

Publication venues where Macdonald has contributed extensively include:

  • Abstracts with programs - Geological Society of America
  • Earth and Planetary Science Letters
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Geology
  • Science Advances

Throughout their career, Macdonald has been recognized with awards such as the Young Scientist Award (Donath Medal) from The Geological Society of America in 2014 and was named a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in 2019.

Best Publications

  • Calibrating the Cryogenian.

    Francis Alexander Macdonald;Mark D. Schmitz;James L. Crowley;Charles F. Roots

  • Snowball Earth climate dynamics and Cryogenian geology-geobiology

    Paul F. Hoffman;Paul F. Hoffman;Dorian S. Abbot;Yosef Ashkenazy;Douglas I. Benn

  • Statistical analysis of iron geochemical data suggests limited late Proterozoic oxygenation

    Erik Sperling;Charles J. Wolock;Alex S. Morgan;Benjamin C. Gill

  • Authigenic Carbonate and the History of the Global Carbon Cycle

    Daniel P. Schrag;John A. Higgins;Francis Alexander Macdonald;David T Johnston

  • A Cryogenian chronology: Two long-lasting synchronous Neoproterozoic glaciations

    Alan D. Rooney;Justin V. Strauss;Alan D. Brandon;Francis A. Macdonald

  • Dodging snowballs: Geochronology of the Gaskiers glaciation and the first appearance of the Ediacaran biota

    Judy P. Pu;Judy P. Pu;Samuel A. Bowring;Jahandar Ramezani;Paul Myrow

  • Re-Os geochronology and coupled Os-Sr isotope constraints on the Sturtian snowball Earth

    Alan D. Rooney;Francis A. Macdonald;Justin V. Strauss;Francis Oe Dudas

  • Continental flood basalt weathering as a trigger for Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth

    Grant M. Cox;Grant M. Cox;Galen P. Halverson;Galen P. Halverson;Ross K. Stevenson;Michelle Vokaty

  • Arc-continent collisions in the tropics set Earth's climate state.

    Francis A. Macdonald;Nicholas L. Swanson-Hysell;Yuem Park;Lorraine Lisiecki

  • A low temperature transfer of ALH84001 from Mars to Earth.

    B. P. Weiss;Joseph L. Kirschvink;Franz J. Baudenbacher;Hojatollah Vali

  • The stratigraphic relationship between the Shuram carbon isotope excursion, the oxygenation of Neoproterozoic oceans, and the first appearance of the Ediacara biota and bilaterian trace fossils in northwestern Canada

    Francis Alexander Macdonald;Justin Vincent Strauss;Erik A. Sperling;Galen P. Halverson

  • Uncovering the Neoproterozoic carbon cycle

    David T Johnston;Francis Alexander Macdonald;B Gill;Paul Hoffman;Paul Hoffman

  • Neoproterozoic iron formation: An evaluation of its temporal, environmental and tectonic significance

    Grant M. Cox;Galen P. Halverson;William G. Minarik;Daniel P. Le Heron

  • The tempo of Ediacaran evolution.

    Chuan Yang;Alan D. Rooney;Daniel J. Condon;Xian-Hua Li

  • The Proterozoic Record of Eukaryotes

    Phoebe A. Cohen;Francis A. Macdonald

  • A basin redox transect at the dawn of animal life

    Erik A. Sperling;Galen P. Halverson;Andrew Herbert Knoll;Francis Alexander Macdonald

  • Stratigraphic and tectonic implications of a newly discovered glacial diamictite-cap carbonate couplet in southwestern Mongolia

    Francis A. Macdonald;David S. Jones;Daniel P. Schrag

  • A lithium-isotope perspective on the evolution of carbon and silicon cycles

    Boriana Kalderon-Asael;Joachim A. R. Katchinoff;Noah J. Planavsky;Ashleigh Von S. Hood

  • Sedimentary talc in Neoproterozoic carbonate successions

    Nicholas Tosca;Francis Alexander Macdonald;Justin Vincent Strauss;David T Johnston

  • Low-latitude arc–continent collision as a driver for global cooling

    Oliver Jagoutz;Francis A. Macdonald;Leigh Royden

  • Neoproterozoic stratigraphy of the Zavkhan terrane of Mongolia: The backbone for Cryogenian and early Ediacaran chemostratigraphic records

    Uyanga Bold;Emily F. Smith;Alan D. Rooney;Samuel A. Bowring

  • Uranium isotope evidence for temporary ocean oxygenation in the aftermath of the Sturtian Snowball Earth

    Kimberly V. Lau;Francis A. Macdonald;Kate Maher;Jonathan L. Payne

Frequent Co-Authors

James L. Crowley
James L. Crowley Boise State University
Justin V. Strauss
Justin V. Strauss Dartmouth College
Galen P. Halverson
Galen P. Halverson McGill University
Daniel P. Schrag
Daniel P. Schrag Harvard University
Grant M. Cox
Grant M. Cox University of Adelaide
Paul F. Hoffman
Paul F. Hoffman University of Edinburgh
Mark D. Schmitz
Mark D. Schmitz Boise State University
John A. Higgins
John A. Higgins Princeton University
Erik A. Sperling
Erik A. Sperling Stanford University

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