Arthur L. Reesman  

Professor Emeritus

Ph.D. Missouri, 1966

Low Temperature Geochemistry

General Interests

Reesman’s research interests are generally related to the processes of chemical weathering. Studies have included the chemical conditions for the formation of high-aluminum clay minerals, the evolution of Middle Tennessee landscapes through chemical denudation and isostatic adjustment, the enhancement of radon emissions in Middle Tennessee, and geochemical studies of ground waters in the upper Mississippi Embayment.

Current Research

Reesman is currently finishing studies of isostatic adjustment of Pleistocene Lake Bonneville in Utah. He is trying to separate the isostatic and non-isostatic (neotectonic) signals that are recorded in the warped paleo-shorelines. Insights from modeling Lake Bonneville should provide a more realistic appraisal of the isostatic response to the denudation processes operating in the Southeastern U.S. and help us understand the evolution of landscapes from the Appalachians to the Mississippi Embayment.

What Students Do

His students have studied the potential impact of mining lignite in Western Tennessee, the distribution of radon in the soils of Middle Tennessee, physical and chemical erosion rates of drainage basins in Middle Tennessee, and trace elements in limestones. Most have taken jobs in the oil and environmental industries; others have gone on to obtain PhD’s.

Selected Publications

Reesman, A.L., Currey, D.R., and Haslam, B.H. (1992).  Separation of isostatic and neotectonic signals recorded in Bonneville Stage shorelines, Chapman Conf. on Tectonics and Topography, A.G.U., Snowbird.

Reesman, A.L., and Stearns R.G. (1989).  The Nashville dome - An isostatically induced erosional structure and the Cumberland Plateau, dome an isostatically dome. Southeastern Geology, 30:147-174.

Reesman, A.L. (1988).  The geomorphic and geochemical enhancement of radon emission in Middle Tennessee: in Geologic Causes of Natural Radionuclide Anomalies, M.A. Marikos and R.H. Hansman (Eds.), Missouri Dept. of Nat. Resources, Spec. Publ. 4, p.119-130.

Reesman, A.L., and Stearns,R.G. (1985).  Evalua-tion of the Beech Grove and a system of nearby lineaments in Central Tennessee.  Southeastern Geology, 26(1):1-20.

Reesman, A.L., and Godfrey, A.E. (1981). Development of the Central Basin of Tennessee by chemical denudation. Zeitschrift fur Geomorphology, 25:437-456.