Staff profile

• 2024 - present: Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Durham University
• 2019 - 2024: Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Durham University
• 2018 - 2019: GeoX Fellow, Institute of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Potsdam. Fusion of high-resolution point cloud and spectral data for deriving topographic metrics.
• 2017: Predoctoral Research Associate, St. Anthony Falls Laboratory, University of Minnesota. Climate change and fluvial systems: investigating the impact of channel geometry on landscape evolution.
• 2016-2017: NERC Knowledge Exchange Fellow, University of Edinburgh. Modelling the impact of future climate change on flood risk in Scotland.
• 2013-2017: PhD, University of Edinburgh. Controls on fluvial networks in upland landscapes: from hillslopes to floodplains.
• 2009-2013: BSc Geology and Physical Geography, University of Edinburgh. First Class Honours.

Research Interests

I am a geomorphologist studying the interactions between the shape of Earth’s topography, surface processes, tectonics, and climate. There are two main strands to my research: 

1.     Development of new computational techniques and methods: to improve our ability to quantify the shape of the Earth’s surface and extract geomorphic metrics. A large part of my research is developing open-source software for analysing topographic data. I particularly focus on dealing with high-resolution data derived from lidar point clouds. I’ve been developing this software, called LSDTopoTools, along with colleagues at the University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, and Queen Mary University of London. See our LSDTopoTools website for more details, or check out our GitHub organisation. We have developed lots of novel techniques for analysing topography, such as extracting channel networks, delineating floodplains and river terraces, and calculating hilltop and hillslope metrics.

2.     Applying these techniques to investigate the impact of climate and tectonics on Earth surface processes. I am particularly interested in i) how the signature of seismic-cycle uplift and strain are recorded in Earth's landscapes; and ii) what drives valley widening and lateral channel mobility in mountain systems. I have ongoing work focusing in regions such as the Nepal Himalaya, the Oregon Coast Range, the western Andes, and the Southern Alps of New Zealand.

Esteem Indicators

2024 European Geosciences Union Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award, Geomorphology Division.

Chapter in book

• Beyond the Long Profile
  
  Mudd, S. M., Roda-Boluda, D. C., Goren, L., & Clubb, F. J. (2021). Beyond the Long Profile. In Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-818234-5.00026-2
• Reproducible topographic analysis
  
  Grieve, S. W., Clubb, F. J., & Mudd, S. M. (2020). Reproducible topographic analysis. In P. Tarolli & S. M. Mudd (Eds.), Remote sensing of geomorphology. (pp. 339-367). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-444-64177-9.00012-6

Journal Article

• Denudation rates and Holocene sediment storage dynamics inferred from in situ 14 C concentrations in the Feshie basin, Scotland
  
  Towers, A. H., Mudd, S. M., Attal, M., Clubb, F. J., Binnie, S. A., Dunai, T. J., & Haghipour, N. (2025). Denudation rates and Holocene sediment storage dynamics inferred from in situ 14 C concentrations in the Feshie basin, Scotland. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 50(4), Article e70043. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.70043
• Network‐Scale Dynamics of Alluvial Cover in a Mixed Bedrock‐Alluvial River
  
  Oliveira Guirro, M., Hodge, R., Clubb, F., & Turnbull, L. (2025). Network‐Scale Dynamics of Alluvial Cover in a Mixed Bedrock‐Alluvial River. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 130(3), Article e2024JF007968. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024jf007968
• Regional-scale, high-resolution measurements of hilltop curvature reveal tectonic, climatic, and lithologic controls on hillslope morphology
  
  Struble, W. T., Clubb, F. J., & Roering, J. J. (2024). Regional-scale, high-resolution measurements of hilltop curvature reveal tectonic, climatic, and lithologic controls on hillslope morphology. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 647, Article 119044. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2024.119044
• Rock organic carbon oxidation CO2 release offsets silicate weathering sink
  
  Zondervan, J. R., Hilton, R. G., Dellinger, M., Clubb, F. J., Roylands, T., & Ogrič, M. (2023). Rock organic carbon oxidation CO2 release offsets silicate weathering sink. Nature, 623, 329–333. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06581-9
• Himalayan valley-floor widths controlled by tectonically-driven exhumation
  
  Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Schildgen, T. F., van der Beek, P. A., Devrani, R., & Sinclair, H. D. (2023). Himalayan valley-floor widths controlled by tectonically-driven exhumation. Nature Geoscience, 16, 739–746. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01238-8
• An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
  
  Jamieson, S. S. R., Ross, N., Paxman, G. J. G., Clubb, F. J., Young, D. A., Yan, S., Greenbaum, J., Blankenship, D. D., & Siegert, M. J. (2023). An ancient river landscape preserved beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. Nature Communications, 14(1), Article 6507. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42152-2
• Continuous measurements of valley floor width in mountainous landscapes
  
  Clubb, F. J., Weir, E. F., & Mudd, S. M. (2022). Continuous measurements of valley floor width in mountainous landscapes. Earth Surface Dynamics, 10(3), 437-456. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-437-2022
• Impact of changing concavity indices on channel steepness and divide migration metrics
  
  Gailleton, B., Mudd, S. M., Clubb, F. J., Grieve, S. W., & Hurst, M. D. (2021). Impact of changing concavity indices on channel steepness and divide migration metrics. Journal of Geophysical Research. Earth Surface., 126(10), Article e2020JF006060. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020jf006060
• Differences in channel and hillslope geometry record a migrating uplift wave at the Mendocino Triple Junction
  
  Clubb, F., Mudd, S., Hurst, M., & Grieve, S. (2020). Differences in channel and hillslope geometry record a migrating uplift wave at the Mendocino Triple Junction. Geology, 48(2), 184-188. https://doi.org/10.1130/g46939.1
• Detection of channel-hillslope coupling along a tectonic gradient
  
  Hurst, M. D., Grieve, S. W., Clubb, F. J., & Mudd, S. M. (2019). Detection of channel-hillslope coupling along a tectonic gradient. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 522, 30-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.06.018
• Clustering River Profiles to Classify Geomorphic Domains
  
  Clubb, F. J., Bookhagen, B., & Rheinwalt, A. (2019). Clustering River Profiles to Classify Geomorphic Domains. Journal of Geophysical Research. Earth Surface., 124(6), 1417-1439. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019jf005025
• A segmentation approach for the reproducible extraction and quantification of knickpoints from river long profiles
  
  Gailleton, B., Mudd, S. M., Clubb, F. J., Peifer, D., & Hurst, M. D. (2019). A segmentation approach for the reproducible extraction and quantification of knickpoints from river long profiles. Earth Surface Dynamics, 7(1), 211-230. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-7-211-2019
• Controls on Zero‐Order Basin Morphology
  
  Grieve, S. W., Hales, T. C., Parker, R. N., Mudd, S. M., & Clubb, F. J. (2018). Controls on Zero‐Order Basin Morphology. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 123(12), 3269-3291. https://doi.org/10.1029/2017jf004453
• Unsupervised detection of salt marsh platforms: a topographic method
  
  Goodwin, G. C., Mudd, S. M., & Clubb, F. J. (2018). Unsupervised detection of salt marsh platforms: a topographic method. Earth Surface Dynamics, 6(1), 239-255. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-239-2018
• How concave are river channels?
  
  Mudd, S. M., Clubb, F. J., Gailleton, B., & Hurst, M. D. (2018). How concave are river channels?. Earth Surface Dynamics, 6(2), 505-523. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-505-2018
• Geomorphometric delineation of floodplains and terraces from objectively defined topographic thresholds
  
  Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Milodowski, D. T., Valters, D. A., Slater, L. J., Hurst, M. D., & Limaye, A. B. (2017). Geomorphometric delineation of floodplains and terraces from objectively defined topographic thresholds. Earth Surface Dynamics, 5, 369-385. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-2017-21
• The relationship between drainage density, erosion rate, and hilltop curvature: Implications for sediment transport processes
  
  Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Attal, M., Milodowski, D. T., & Grieve, S. W. (2016). The relationship between drainage density, erosion rate, and hilltop curvature: Implications for sediment transport processes. Journal of Geophysical Research. Earth Surface., 121(10), 1724-1745. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015jf003747
• How does grid-resolution modulate the topographic expression of geomorphic processes?
  
  Grieve, S. W., Mudd, S. M., Milodowski, D. T., Clubb, F. J., & Furbish, D. J. (2016). How does grid-resolution modulate the topographic expression of geomorphic processes?. Earth Surface Dynamics, 4(3), 627-653. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-627-2016
• Objective extraction of channel heads from high-resolution topographic data
  
  Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Milodowski, D. T., Hurst, M. D., & Slater, L. J. (2014). Objective extraction of channel heads from high-resolution topographic data. Water Resources Research, 50(5), 4283-4304. https://doi.org/10.1002/2013wr015167