Tamsin's work brings together expertise in volcanology/magmatism, atmospheric chemistry and paleoclimatology/stratigraphy. This combination allows her to tackle problems ranging from acute volcanic hazards and air pollution events in the present-day to the role of volcanism in the long-term evolution of our planet’s environment over its geological history and much in between.

Her main research interests centre on the science behind volcanoes and volcanic behaviour. Her motivation is to understand volcanoes as (a) a key planetary scale process throughout geological time, vital for maintaining habitability as well as driving environmental change, (b) natural hazards and (c) resources (e.g., geothermal power and the development of ore deposits).

She has also studied the emissions from an oil depot fire (Buncefield 2005) and is generally interested in the global mercury cycle as well as other biogeochemical cycles.