Dr Margaret Shanafield

My research is at the nexus between hydrology and hydrogeology. I began in hydrology by studying water clarity in Lake Tahoe, a deep mountain lake, then shifted my research to surface water-groundwater interactions, where focus was on developing the use of heat as a tracer of streambed water flux and advancing an integrated model capable of simulating streamflow down a dry riverbed. I enjoy engaging in a diverse set of projects from international water development to ecohydrology.

Currently, my primary research focus is on understanding how rivers function hydrologically, particularly in semi-arid to arid regions where streamflow ceases for some part of the year. Within an inclusive, interdisciplinary context, I aim to improve our understanding of how rainfall becomes streamflow, and how this streamflow recharges our aquifers. 

Read about some of my projects here:

• https://www.stockjournal.com.au/story/6885380/farmers-help-grow-water-plan/
• https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/is-the-river-really-dry-scientific-interpretations-of-zero-flow-readings/

• http://www.australasianscience.com.au/article/issue-marchapril-2019/immediate-risks-gas-production-water-resources.html#:~:text=This%20is%20due%20to%20several,compiling%20and%20making%20sense%20of
• https://10play.com.au/scope/episodes/season-4/episode-71/tpv190902jcung (at 10’45”)
• https://research.flinders.edu.au/rp/Blog/3394/research-engagement-and-impact-ecr-spotlight-margaret-shanafield
• https://blogs.agu.org/waterunderground/2017/07/24/humanitarian-groundwater-projects-notes-motivations-academic-world/
• http://stories.scienceinpublic.com.au/2015/turning-groundwater-into-wine/
• http://news.flinders.edu.au/blog/2017/07/17/urban-heat-islands/
• http://news.flinders.edu.au/blog/2015/11/23/urban-aquifer-project-links-to-germany/
• http://news.flinders.edu.au/blog/2014/03/31/measuring-water-flow-in-the-endangered-coorong/