Jake Anderson

Assistant Research Professor

• Atmospheric Acoustics
• Geoscience Instrumentation
• Innovative Field/Analysis Methods

Education

• Ph.D. Geophysics
  Boise State University, 2018
  Dissertation: Pressure Waves and Tephra Dispersal from Volcanic Explosions: Models, Observations, and Instrumentation
• M.S. Geophysics
  New Mexico Tech, 2013
  Thesis: Mapping Thunder Sources by Inverting Acoustic and Electromagnetic Observations
• B.S. Geology and Mathematics
  University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill, 2009
  Thesis: Topographic Effects on Seismic Waves at Santiaguito Volcano, Guatemala

Opportunities for Students

Interested in learning more about instrumentation and data collection? Check out my undergraduate/graduate course “Instrumentation and Electronics in Geoscience” (GEOS 497/597, spring).

I have various undergraduate and graduate-level opportunities focused on computational analysis of infrasound data. Please get in touch if you’re interested in programming (especially Python, which is a big focus of our community) and eager to use infrasound/acoustics to understand Earth processes!

Instrumentation Development

The Gem Infrasound Logger, my main development project at the moment, is a self-contained infrasound sensor-logger designed with the objectives of low cost, low power consumption, and ease of transport, concealment, and use. It is particularly well-suited for high-risk settings (aerial platforms, hazardous sites, high-traffic areas) and deployment en masse or in unconventional geometries due to its low cost, light weight, and fast cable-free installation.
The following resources describe the development, properties, and applications of the Gem:

• Gem Website
• SRL Paper
• Poster
• Gem Hardware Designs
• Gem Firmware Code

Other recent instrumentation projects include work on a soil CO2 sensor, a precise GNSS system for monitoring glacier motion, and a combined GPS/accelerometer system for monitoring cattle behavior.

Whitewater Acoustics

I am interested in infrasound and audible sound originating in whitewater features on streams, including rapids, dam spillways, and waterfalls. Whitewater sounds have the potential for monitoring discharge and stream hydrodynamics, and may have positive or negative effects on nearby wildlife and humans.

Other Research

Recent research topics include dense-array infrasound analysis of aftershocks of the 2020-03-31 Central Idaho earthquake, instrumentation development for monitoring glacier flow, cattle behavior, and snow avalanches, nonlinear infrasound propagation from volcanic explosions, tephra dispersal from the 2015-03-03 lava fountain at Villarrica (Chile), and infrasound analysis of the 2012-07-14 vulcanian eruption at Tungurahua (Ecuador).

Publications

• Anderson, J.F., Johnson, J.B., Steele, A.L., Ruiz, M.C., Brand, B.D., 2018. Diverse eruptive activity revealed by acoustic and electromagnetic observations of the 14 July 2013 intense vulcanian eruption of Tungurahua volcano, Ecuador. Geophysical Research Letters, 45 (7), 2976–2985. doi:10.1002/2017GL076419
• Johnson, J.B., Watson, L.M., Dunham, E.M., Palma, J.L, Anderson, J.F., 2018. Forecasting a paroxysmal lava lake eruption using resonant infrasound tones. Geophysical Research Letters, 45, 2213-2220. doi:10.1002/2017GL076506
• Anderson, J.F., Johnson, J.B., Bowman, D.C., Ronan, T.J., 2017. The Gem infrasound logger and custom-built instrumentation. Seismological Research Letters, 89 (1), 153-164. doi:10.1785/0220170067
• Ronan, T.J., Lees, J.M., Mikesell, T.D., Anderson, J.F., and Johnson, J.B., 2017. Acoustic and seismic fields of hydraulic jumps at varying Froude numbers. Geophysical Research Letters 44 (19), 9734-9741. doi:10.1002/2017GL074511
• Anchundia, D.J., Anderson, J.F., and Anderson, D.J., 2017. Overland flight by seabirds at Isla Isabela, Galapagos. Marine Ornithology, 45 (2), 139-141.
• Anderson, J.F., Johnson, J.B., Arechiga, R.O., Thomas, R.J., 2014. Mapping thunder sources by inverting acoustic and electromagnetic observations. Journal of Geophysical Research—Atmospheres 119 (23) 287-304. doi:10.1002/2014JD021624
• Bowman, D.C., Taddeucci, J., Kim, K., Anderson, J.F., Lees, J.M., Graettinger, A.H., Sonder, I., Valentine, G.A., 2014. The acoustic signatures of ground acceleration, gas expansion, and spall fallback in experimental volcanic explosions. Geophysical Research Letters, 41, doi:10.1002/2014GL059324.
• Anderson, J.F., Lees, J.M., 2014. Instrument corrections by time-domain deconvolution. Seismological Research Letters, 85 (1) 197-201. doi:10.1785/0220130062
• Johnson, J.B., Anderson, J.F., Anthony, R.E., Sciotto, M., 2013. Detecting geyser activity with infrasound. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 256, 105-117. doi:10.1785/0220130062
• Anderson, J.F., Lees, J.M., Waite, G.P., Johnson, J.B., 2012. Source and propagation effects on near-field co-eruptive ground motion at Santiaguito volcano, Guatemala. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 102 (2), 696-706. doi:10.1785/0120110106
• Johnson, J.B., Anderson, J.F., Marcillo, O., Arrowsmith, S., 2012. Probing local wind and temperature structure using infrasound from Volcan Villarrica (Chile). Journal of Geophysical Research–Atmospheres, 117, D17107, doi:10.1029/2012JD017694.
• Johnson, J.B., Arechiga, R.O., Edens, H.E., Thomas, R.J., Anderson, J.F., Johnson, R.L., 2011. Imaging Thunder. Geophysical Research Letters 38:L19807. doi:10.1029/2011GL049162
• Berenhaut, K.S., Gibson, B.G., Newman, J.H., Anderson, J.F., 2006. Bounds for fourth order (0,1) difference equations. Computers and Mathematics with Applications 54:1250-1259. doi:10.1016/j.camwa.2006.10.039.

Contact Information

Email: jacobanderson152@boisestate.edu
Office: ERB 3147