Foul Bay, Western Australia

Sea Level + Environmental Reconstruction using Uranium-Thorium (SLEUTh) Lab

Welcome to the SLEUTh Lab (Sea Level & Environmental reconstruction using Uranium-Thorium). We are a team of geoscientists, led by Dr. Andrea Dutton, who are committed to studying Earth history as a means to better understand the dynamics of our planet and how they will shape our future.  Most of our research projects focus on past climate and sea level change, but more broadly address topics within carbonate and isotope geochemistry, sedimentary systems and diagenesis, weathering and ocean chemistry, including intersections with paleobiology, geophysics, and much more.

In addition, we are committed to not just studying climate, but improving it.  That is to say, we are invested in creating a space not just to carry out world-class science, but one that fosters diversity and innovation by being open, inclusive, and safe.  We seek to empower others by sharing our scientific knowledge through public outreach and community engagement in a way that promotes social and environmental justice.

Andrea Dutton, sitting on a red rocky outcrop next to the ocean
Dr. Andrea Dutton at one of her field sites in Western Australia

Group News

09/2025

Welcome to NSF Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Kyle Fouke, who will join our group for the next two years! Kyle received his Ph.D. in Geoscience at the University of Texas at Austin. He uses a new super-resolution autofluorescence (SRAF) microscopy technique to understand how ancient coral reefs are altered by seawater and freshwater, and will be pairing this technique with U-series dating to resolve changes in sea level during the Last Interglacial.

08/2025

Andrea has been chosen to receive the 2025 Geological Society of America Public Service Award. 

Check out the August 2025 episode of the Climate Hour Podcast to hear insights from Andrea and other scientists on the coming impacts of sea-level rise.

Congratulations to PhD Candidate Rudy Molinek for being selected as a 2025-2026 Geological Society of America Science Communication Fellow!

PhD Student Sophia Pinter and Andrea attended a post-cruise meeting for IODP Exp 389: Hawaiian Drowned Reefs in Hilo, HI. Congrats to Sophia for receiving an IODP Shelburn Award for travel!

07/2024

Andrea attended the 2nd PALSEA-Next workshop “Paleoconstraints on past sea level changes” in Venice, Italy

06/2025

See here and here for coverage of Vyverberg et al (2025) “Episodic reef growth in the Last Interglacial driven by competing influence of polar ice sheets to sea level rise”

05/2025

See here for coverage of Stokes et al. (2025) “Warming of +1.5 °C is too high for polar ice sheets”

Congratulations to PhD Student Sophia Pinter for receiving the James D. and Stella M. Robinson RA from the UW-Madison Department of Geoscience!

01/2025

We welcomed technical staff from Elemental Scientific, Inc. to install our microFAST autosampler!

12/2024

PhD Candidate Mel Reusche presented her speleothem work from Spring Valley Cave (MN) at the AGU 2024 Fall Meeting. PhD Candidate Rudy Molinek presented his work on Pb isotope signatures of Laurentide Ice Sheet disintegration, and Andrea presented a perspective on LIG sea level.

10/2024

We welcomed engineering staff from Nu Instruments to install our Nu Plasma 3D Mass Spectrometer!

08/2024

We are excited to welcome our new Lab Manager, Dr. Emily Mixon!