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J.S. Sinninghe Damsté

J.S. Sinninghe Damsté

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Earth Science
Netherlands
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Earth Science

D-Index
150
Citations
77634
World Ranking
3
National Ranking
1

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Earth Science in Netherlands Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Earth Science in Netherlands Leader Award
  • 2005 - Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 2004 - Spinoza Prize, Dutch Research Council

Overview

What is he best known for?

The fields of study he is best known for:

  • Ecology
  • Organic chemistry
  • Bacteria

J.S. Sinninghe Damsté mainly investigates Oceanography, Total organic carbon, Paleontology, Photic zone and Archaea. His research brings together the fields of Sedimentary rock and Oceanography. The concepts of his Total organic carbon study are interwoven with issues in Organic matter, Kerogen, Algaenan, Geochemistry and Nannochloropsis sp..

His Photic zone research includes elements of Sterane, Hopanoids, Isotopes of carbon and Anoxic waters. His Archaea study incorporates themes from Environmental chemistry, Anaerobic oxidation of methane, Methane and Glycerol. The study incorporates disciplines such as Glacial period and Vegetation in addition to Holocene.

His most cited work include:

  • Evidence for gammacerane as an indicator of water column stratification (626 citations)
  • Revised calibration of the MBT–CBT paleotemperature proxy based on branched tetraether membrane lipids in surface soils (276 citations)
  • Application of biological markers in the recognition of palaeohypersaline environments (235 citations)

What are the main themes of his work throughout his whole career to date?

J.S. Sinninghe Damsté focuses on Oceanography, Sediment, Environmental chemistry, Paleontology and Ecology. His studies deal with areas such as Sedimentary rock and Organic matter as well as Oceanography. His Organic matter research is multidisciplinary, relying on both Total organic carbon and Terrigenous sediment.

His Environmental chemistry study integrates concerns from other disciplines, such as Sulfur, Isotopes of carbon, Archaea, Mineralogy and Methane. His Archaea research integrates issues from Carbonate and Cold seep. His research investigates the link between Paleontology and topics such as Geochemistry that cross with problems in Anaerobic oxidation of methane.

He most often published in these fields:

  • Oceanography (42.71%)
  • Sediment (14.06%)
  • Environmental chemistry (13.02%)

What were the highlights of his more recent work (between 2013-2021)?

  • Oceanography (42.71%)
  • Sediment (14.06%)
  • Holocene (11.98%)

In recent papers he was focusing on the following fields of study:

J.S. Sinninghe Damsté spends much of his time researching Oceanography, Sediment, Holocene, Sea surface temperature and Sedimentary rock. The concepts of his Oceanography study are interwoven with issues in Organic matter and Particulates. His study looks at the relationship between Sediment and topics such as Environmental chemistry, which overlap with Methanotroph, Petroleum seep, Hydrogen and Oxygen minimum zone.

His work on Last Glacial Maximum as part of general Holocene research is often related to Distribution, thus linking different fields of science. His Sea surface temperature study combines topics in areas such as Continental shelf and Upwelling. His Sedimentary rock research is multidisciplinary, incorporating elements of Proxy and Provenance.

Between 2013 and 2021, his most popular works were:

  • Spatial heterogeneity of sources of branched tetraethers in shelf systems : The geochemistry of tetraethers in the Berau River delta (Kalimantan, Indonesia) (83 citations)
  • Climate variability and ocean fertility during the Aptian Stage (61 citations)
  • A perturbed hydrological cycle during Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (57 citations)

In his most recent research, the most cited papers focused on:

  • Ecology
  • Organic chemistry
  • Bacteria

His primary areas of investigation include Oceanography, TEX86, Sediment, Sea surface temperature and Organic matter. The study incorporates disciplines such as Soil water and Seasonality in addition to Oceanography. His TEX86 research is multidisciplinary, incorporating perspectives in Volcano, Stage, Paleontology and Anoxic waters.

His Sea surface temperature study integrates concerns from other disciplines, such as Ocean gyre, Last Glacial Maximum, Holocene and Mediterranean climate, Mediterranean sea. His study in Organic matter is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing from both Structural basin, Total organic carbon, Pleistocene, Sedimentary rock and Provenance. His Total organic carbon study is concerned with the field of Environmental chemistry as a whole.

Best Publications

  • A microbial consortium couples anaerobic methane oxidation to denitrification

    Ashna A. Raghoebarsing;Arjan Pol;Katinka T. van de Pas-Schoonen;Alfons J. P. Smolders

  • Distributional variations in marine crenarchaeotal membrane lipids: a new tool for reconstructing ancient sea water temperatures?

    Stefan Schouten;Ellen C. Hopmans;Enno Schefuß;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • A novel proxy for terrestrial organic matter in sediments based on branched and isoprenoid tetraether lipids

    Ellen C Hopmans;Johan W.H Weijers;Enno Schefuß;Lydie Herfort

  • Evidence for gammacerane as an indicator of water column stratification

    J.S. Sinninghe Damsté;F. Kenig;M.P. Koopmans;J. Koster

  • The organic geochemistry of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether lipids: A review

    Stefan Schouten;Ellen C. Hopmans;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • Environmental controls on bacterial tetraether membrane lipid distribution in soils

    Johan W.H. Weijers;Stefan Schouten;Jurgen C. van den Donker;Ellen C. Hopmans

  • Restricted utility of the pristane/phytane ratio as a palaeoenvironmental indicator

    H. L. ten Haven;J. W. de Leeuw;J. Rullkötter;J. S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • New indices and calibrations derived from the distribution of crenarchaeal isoprenoid tetraether lipids: Implications for past sea surface temperature reconstructions

    Jung-Hyun Kim;Jaap van der Meer;Stefan Schouten;Peer Helmke

  • Subtropical Arctic Ocean temperatures during the Palaeocene/Eocene thermal maximum

    Appy Sluijs;Stefan Schouten;Mark Pagani;Martijn Woltering

  • Occurrence and distribution of tetraether membrane lipids in soils : Implications for the use of the TEX86 proxy and the BIT index

    Johan W.H. Weijers;Stefan Schouten;Otto C. Spaargaren;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • Crenarchaeol: the characteristic core glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether membrane lipid of cosmopolitan pelagic crenarchaeota.

    Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté;Stefan Schouten;Ellen C Hopmans;Adri C T van Duin

  • Northern Hemisphere Controls on Tropical Southeast African Climate During the Past 60,000 Years

    Jessica E. Tierney;James M. Russell;Yongsong Huang;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • The effect of improved chromatography on GDGT-based palaeoproxies

    Ellen C. Hopmans;Stefan Schouten;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • An improved method to determine the absolute abundance of glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether lipids

    Carme Huguet;Ellen C. Hopmans;Wilma Febo-Ayala;David H. Thompson

  • Analysis, structure and geochemical significance of organically-bound sulphur in the geosphere : state of the art and future research

    Jaap S. Sinninghe Damste;Jan W. De Leeuw

  • Occurrence and abundance of 6-methyl branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers in soils : Implications for palaeoclimate reconstruction

    Cindy De Jonge;Ellen C. Hopmans;Claudia I. Zell;Jung Hyun Kim

  • Cretaceous sea-surface temperature evolution: Constraints from TEX86 and planktonic foraminiferal oxygen isotopes

    Charlotte L. O'Brien;Stuart A. Robinson;Richard D. Pancost;Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté

  • Arctic hydrology during global warming at the Palaeocene/Eocene thermal maximum

    Mark Pagani;Nikolai Pedentchouk;Matthew Huber;Appy Sluijs

  • Analytical methodology for TEX86 paleothermometry by high-performance liquid chromatography/atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry.

    Stefan Schouten;Carme Huguet;Ellen C Hopmans;Michiel V M Kienhuis

  • Revised calibration of the MBT–CBT paleotemperature proxy based on branched tetraether membrane lipids in surface soils

    F. Peterse;J. van der Meer;S. Schouten;J.W.H. Weijers

  • Diagenetic and catagenetic products of isorenieratene: Molecular indicators for photic zone anoxia

    Martin P. Koopmans;Jürgen Köster;Heidy M.E. Van Kaam-Peters;Fabien Kenig

  • Global sediment core-top calibration of the TEX86 paleothermometer in the ocean

    Jung-Hyun Kim;Stefan Schouten;Ellen C. Hopmans;Barbara Donner

  • Application of biological markers in the recognition of palaeohypersaline environments

    H. L. ten Haven;J. W. de Leeuw;J. S. Sinninghe Damsté;P. A. Schenck

Frequent Co-Authors

Ellen C. Hopmans
Ellen C. Hopmans Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research
J.W. de Leeuw
J.W. de Leeuw Delft University of Technology
Stefan Schouten
Stefan Schouten Utrecht University
Marianne Baas
Marianne Baas Delft University of Technology
Gert-Jan Reichart
Gert-Jan Reichart Utrecht University
Francien Peterse
Francien Peterse Utrecht University
Dirk Verschuren
Dirk Verschuren Ghent University
Henk Brinkhuis
Henk Brinkhuis Utrecht University
John M. Hayes
John M. Hayes Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Johan W.H. Weijers
Johan W.H. Weijers Shell (Netherlands)

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