The Sukil River valley: a natural geological laboratory (case studies from the Ukrainian Carpathians)

Abstract

Abstract In this chapter we present a brief geological description of the Sukil River valley, which is located in the Ivano-Frankivsk region in the western part of Ukraine, and the interesting geological features found there. Here, different types of rocks are exposed over a small area. The area is rich in various structural features such as joints, small faults, and different types of folds, duplexes and clastic dykes. Two outcrops of folds found in the Cretaceous deposits in the village of Bukivets are unique geosites. In addition, in the city of Bolekhiv, there are the ruins of a saltery. We describe the types of research conducted in this natural laboratory, most of which concerns structural geology. Geological phenomena are studied using both classical approaches and the latest technologies. Electronic compasses were used widely in the study of mesostructures. For the first time, balanced geological sections have been constructed for the territory of the Ukrainian Carpathians both for outcrops and for the entire Sukil River valley. Ground-based laser scanning was used for the detailed mapping of folds in Bukivets. Subsequently, the exposure was studied using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry, which was used to construct virtual geological outcrops that can be used widely for educational purposes. The urgency for creating virtual tours became apparent during the COVID pandemic. These models were also used to create the ‘Geo-Carpathians’ project, a Polish–Ukrainian geotourism route through the Carpathian Mountains. These models can be also used to assist in the teaching of the structural geology of the Carpathians, in the geological training of Earth Sciences students, in excursions for different types of Ukrainian and international conferences, for high-school students, and, indeed, for anyone interested in geology.