McKnight received a BS in mechanical engineering (1975), MS in civil engineering (1978), and her PhD in environmental engineering in 1979, all from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[3]
Career and impact
After completing her graduate studies, McKnight began working for the US Geological Survey (USGS) as a research scientist for the Water Resources Division.[4] As part of her work with USGS, she conducted research on lakes in the blast zone of Mount St. Helens in 1980.[5]
In 1996, McKnight transitioned to the University of Colorado Boulder,[5] where she became one of the founding principal investigators of the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research Program[6] in Antarctica's McMurdo Dry Valleys. While continuing to conduct extensive research in Antarctica, she also conducts research in the Rocky Mountains,[7] where she develops interactions with state and local groups involved in mine drainage and watershed issues.[5] In total McKnight has authored or co-authored over 300 publications.[8]
McKnight has been nationally and internationally recognized for her "seminal"[9] and "visionary"[10] contributions to Antarctic science. McKnight Creek in Taylor Valley, Victoria Land is named after her. She is also responsible for naming Antarctic features, including Furlong Creek.
Her contributions to major scientific institutions include service on several National Research Council committees; service on the Water, Science and Technology Board and the Polar Research Board;[4] and tenure as president of the American Geophysical Union Biogeosciences section.[10] In 2015 she was awarded CU-Boulder's Distinguished Research Lectureship, and in 2021, McKnight was recognized as a Distinguished Professor by the University of Colorado Boulder.[11][12] McKnight also was founding editor of the Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences.[10]
McKnight, Diane M., et al. "Spectrofluorometric characterization of dissolved organic matter for indication of precursor organic material and aromaticity". Limnology and Oceanography. 46.1 (2001): 38–48.
Aiken, George R., et al. Humic Substances in Soil, Sediment, and Water: Geochemistry, Isolation and Characterization. John Wiley & Sons, 1985.
Tranvik, Lars J., et al. "Lakes and reservoirs as regulators of carbon cycling and climate". Limnology and Oceanography. 54.6 part 2 (2009): 2298–2314.
^ abCommittee on US Army Corps of Engineers Water Resources Science, Engineering, and Planning (2012). Corps of Engineers Water Resources Infrastructure: Deterioration, Investment, or Divestment?. Washington, D.C: The National Academies Press.
