Regional Mapping Project Research Articles

SE Asia as part of Gondwana: a 1960s regional mapping project over Southern Thailand that lay behind the hypothesis

Abstract In the 1960s, anticipating the award of concessions in the Gulf of Thailand, BP carried out reconnaissance geological mapping over all of Southern Thailand including its Gulf islands. The resulting eight geological maps at 1:250 000 scale provided a database that underpinned discussions of Thailand's place in global plate-tectonic reconstructions that were emerging at that time. In particular, new light was thrown on the Paleozoic succession, and important differences were found between the Upper Thai Peninsula and the Lower Peninsula (respectively, NW and SE of the prominent bend in the peninsula's outline). The Phuket Group of the Upper Peninsula is a very thick diamictite-bearing succession of possible Devonian to Early Permian age, apparently sourced in the west, a region now occupied by the Indian Ocean. That in turn suggested a possible Gondwana origin for SE Asia, a contentious concept at the time, but one that is now widely accepted. The emphasis of field mapping these days is on obtaining detailed data that necessarily means over areas of limited extent. But a very broad regional mapping project such as BP's in Thailand revealed stratigraphic and tectonic insights that could be revealed only from a wide-ranging regional study of this kind.

Science and Life of a Geologist through his Papers. The Personal Archive of Giovanni Capellini in La Spezia

This study of the life and work of the Italian geologist Giovanni Capellini (1833-1922) started in 2005 during the process of restoring and reorganizing that portion of his personal archive kept at the Academy Lunigianese of Sciences in La Spezia, Italy. Until now, little has been written on the scientific achievements of Giovanni Capellini, resulting from a sixty year career. This contribution aims to offer an overview of the scientific biography of Capellini, his publications and manuscript documents, and the main contents of that portion of his personal archive housed in La Spezia. Capellini began his long career in the natural sciences by educating himself in La Spezia, after which he enrolled in and graduated from the University of Pisa, Italy. He concluded his formal education with one year of educational travel in Europe. At the age of twenty-seven, Capellini obtained the professorship of geology at the University of Bologna and remained there for sixty years. During his career, he achieved several important goals, among them the reorganization of the Geological and Paleontological Museum of the University of Bologna. The Museum was founded in 1871 and soon became an institution recognized for its excellence in Italy and throughout Europe. By the conclusion of his career in 1922, he was a professor of international fame, Senator of the Kingdom of Italy, and supporter of international scientific dialogue as an indispensable means for the advancement of knowledge. Capellini always promoted the diffusion of natural sciences studies, both within Italy and throughout Europe. He contributed to three regional mapping projects that were incorporated into the geological map of Italy. Above all, he educated many generations of young professionals who contributed to Italy's economic and cultural life.

Potential field modelling of mafic and exhalative rocks in the Girilambone- Tritton mine area, western NSW

Potential field geophysical data sets for the Coolabah 1:100 000 map sheet area (60 km east of Cobar) were interpreted to better understand poorly exposed bedrock as part of a regional mapping project by the Geological Survey of New South Wales. The map area includes historic and present-day copper mining of VHMS deposits in the Girilambone district and at Tritton mine. Information on the distribution and depth extent of mafic, ultramafic, and exhalative rocks is sought using regional aeromagnetic and gravity data.Multi-scale edge analysis gradients and upward continuation filtering for both gravity and magnetic data provided preliminary ideas on the nature of anomaly sources in basement. Near-surface magnetic anomalies were reconciled with mapped lithologies and magnetic susceptibilities, and then magnetic sources defined using an iterative process of initial forward models, inversion of selected parameters, and resulting adjustment of the forward model. The results of magnetic and gravity modelling across the Coolabah map sheet (in the Tritton Mine area) were used to assist in the construction of geological cross-sections.Correlations between near-surface magnetic sources and deeper gravity sources are good for ultramafic rocks and quartz-magnetite-hematite rocks in the southeast quadrant of the map area, but the two data sets are more difficult to reconcile elsewhere. The resulting modelling indicates complex steeply dipping stratigraphy (including narrow mafic and ultramafic rocks near to surface), and a high density basement unit (possibly a large mafic intrusion) below a depth of five kilometres.

The International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) Version 1.0—A new bathymetric compilation covering circum‐Antarctic waters

AbstractThe International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) Version 1.0 is a new digital bathymetric model (DBM) portraying the seafloor of the circum‐Antarctic waters south of 60°S. IBCSO is a regional mapping project of the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO). The IBCSO Version 1.0 DBM has been compiled from all available bathymetric data collectively gathered by more than 30 institutions from 15 countries. These data include multibeam and single‐beam echo soundings, digitized depths from nautical charts, regional bathymetric gridded compilations, and predicted bathymetry. Specific gridding techniques were applied to compile the DBM from the bathymetric data of different origin, spatial distribution, resolution, and quality. The IBCSO Version 1.0 DBM has a resolution of 500 × 500 m, based on a polar stereographic projection, and is publicly available together with a digital chart for printing from the project website (www.ibcso.org) and at http://dx.doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.805736.

The International Permafrost Association’s contribution to the International Polar Year

other permafrost activities include regional mapping projects in central Asia and the Nordic region, education, outreach and data management activities (brown and christiansen 200 ). The permafrost young Researchers Network (pyRN) with over 500 members in 40 countries, encourages the development of a new generation of permafrost researchers. A catalogue of International university courses on permafrost (Iucp) list over 135 courses in 17 countries (christiansen et al., 2007). our collective permafrost legacy for Ipy is to develop an international network of permanent permafrost observatories, establish a sustainable data system, and help develop the next generation of permafrost researchers. The International permafrost Association (IpA), with its 2 national members, has taken the lead in organizing regional and bipolar programs to improve our current understanding of the state and fate of permafrost, soils, and periglacial processes throughout the polar and high elevation regions of planet Earth. Although permafrost temperature observations were made throughout the last century and continue to the present, many locations with excellent past records have been abandoned and some regions are under represented. Warming since the late 1970s has been observed in permafrost temperature profiles from many locations in the Northern hemisphere; parts of Alaska, canada, central Asia, northern Russia, and midand low-latitude mountain regions (brown and Romanovsky 2008, Romanovsky et al. 2008). The anniversary for International polar year (Ipy) provided an opportunity for development and implementation of a broad range of permafrost research and monitor-

Swiss Forest Vegetation Database

The Swiss Forest Vegetation Database (GIVD ID EU-CH-005) contains roughly 14,800 releves located in all parts of Switzerland, and ranging from 200 to 2,480 m a.s.l. Releves were assessed between 1904 and 1995 by 320 different activities with one or more persons involved. A majority of the releves were published in papers, monographs or served for regional mapping projects. A first consistent classification into 71 Swiss forest communities derived from 2,533 of these releves (17%) and equalled the starting point of this collection. During the 1980s and ‘90s, the database was largely extended in order to establish a basis for a revised classification. Meanwhile, many cantons of Switzerland commissioned local forest classifications, which also resulted in an evolution of local expertise on the one hand, and in the difficulty of synthesizing this expertise by means of formal analyses. Eventually, the revision of Ellenberg & Klotzli’s old classification failed. To date, there is no new analysis-based classification of Swiss forests. In contrast, a pragmatic system was established that largely corresponds to the old Ellenberg & Kloztli numbers and may translate between the differing cantonal forest community systems.

Subsurface structure of the Netherlands - results of recent onshore and offshore mapping

AbstractThis paper presents depth maps for eight key horizons and seven thickness maps covering the onshore and offshore areas for the Late Permian to recent sedimentary section of the Netherlands. These maps, prepared in the context of a TNO regional mapping project, are supported by nine regional structural cross sections and a table summarizing the timing of tectonic activity from Carboniferous to recent. These new regional maps enable the delineation of various structural elements but also reveal the development of these elements through time with improved detail. Since the latest Carboniferous the tectonic setting of the Netherlands changed repeatedly. During successive tectonic phases several pre-existing structural elements were reactivated and new elements appeared. The various identified regional structural elements are grouped into six tectonically active periods: Late Carboniferous, Permian, Triassic, Late Jurassic, Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic. This study demonstrates that many structural elements and fault systems were repeatedly reactivated and that a clear distinction exists between long-lived elements, such as the Roer Valley Graben, and short-lived structural elements, such as the Terschelling Basin.

Everyday misadventures of the Everyman of interpretation

PreviousNext You have accessThe Leading EdgeVolume 24, Issue 12Everyday misadventures of the Everyman of interpretationhttps://doi.org/10.1190/tle24121211.1 SectionsAboutPDF/ePub ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail For several months Sam had been working on a regional mapping project for one of the company's district offices Assignments to projects of this particular kind were not uncommon, because the districts often were heavily involved in well operations or lease evaluations and had neither the staff nor the time to conduct regional studies. Although Sam understood that operational matters must necessarily command highest priority, he always wondered why regional work seemed to slide so easily to the back burner. Like many of his friends and acquaintances in the geosciences, he viewed regional work as a fundamental plank of a successful exploration program. He thought it deserved earnest effort and consistent support, and should not be relegated to a hit-and-miss activity mirroring the high and low energy periods inherent in the oil and gas business.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 24Issue 12Dec 2005Pages: 1193–1304ISSN (print):1070-485X ISSN (online):1938-3789 publication data© 2005 © 2005 by The Society of Exploration GeophysicistsPublisher:Society of Exploration Geophysicists HistoryPublished: 17 Aug 2012Published in print: 01 Dec 2005 CITATION INFORMATION (2005), "Everyday misadventures of the Everyman of interpretation," The Leading Edge 24: 1211-1211. https://doi.org/10.1190/tle24121211.1 Plain-Language Summary PDF Download Metrics Loading ...

Everyday misadventures of the Everyman of interpretation

For the past few weeks Sam had been working on a regional mapping project. He was interpreting two horizons, one relatively shallow in the prospective section and one much deeper. He had tied both horizons to his only control well several tens of miles away and was having difficulty carrying the deep horizon in some areas owing to the poor signal/noise ratio of his data at depth. He had abandoned thoughts of sensibly interpreting seismic facies in the deep section and now was mapping structure as best he could—form mapping, you'd call it, in simple terms.

REVISÃO DA GEOLOGIA DA PORÇÃO SW DO ESTADO DE MATO GROSSO, S DO ESTADO DE RONDÔNIA E DO LESTE DA BOLÍVIA

A review of the region located between latitudes 12° and 20°S and longitudes 57° and 63°W, encompassed by Mato Grosso and Rondonia States (Brazil) and the eastern portion of Bolivia, is presented. Field, petrographic and geochronological data found in the literature were taken into account. Most of the work done since 1970 integrate regional mapping projects, not only by Brazilian, but by Bolivian institutions as well, the latter with the British Geological Survey (BGS). The Author of this review tried to gather information from 1943 to 1989, year in which he would continue the field work, aiming to his M. Sc, dissertation. Tragically, the Author passed away on 19th August, 1990. This review was his sole recovered work, presented as a seminar at the Geociences Institute at Sao Paulo University (IGc-USP). To homage their forever friend, geologist Francisco Joao de Sousa, his colleagues from the IGc-USP are publishing this work, with minor corrections of the original, in Revista Brasileira de Geociencias.

Engineering geological mapping of the Banda Aceh alluvial basin, Northern Sumatra, Indonesia

An engineering geological regional mapping project, carried out as part of a British Government technical assistance programme with the Geological Survey of Indonesia, is described. The project area is approximately 200 square kilometres of thick, lithologically complex alluvium extending inland from the coastal town of Banda Aceh in Northern Sumatra. Field techniques used successfully were surface mapping, machine boring, hand augering and Dutch cone penetrometer sounding; resistivity results were, however, difficult to interpret. Field and laboratory data were recorded on coding forms providing a consistency of data quality and allowing the creation of a computer data bank. This was used to aid interpretation and to assist in the development of units of like geotechnical characteristic which form the basis of the engineering geological maps and sections. The difficulties encountered in doing this are discussed. It is concluded that this regional mapping approach is a useful first step in providing data for planning decisions but that it is not feasible to come to a full understanding of such a complex lithology in mapping an area of this size.

Reconnaissance work in the Triassic of the Wandel Sea Basin, eastern North Greenland

The North-eastern part is one of the geologically least known areas in Greenland and although late Palaeozoic, Mesozoic and Tertiary strata are known to comprise the Wandel Sea basin, litlIe stratigraphical and structural detail is available (for summaries see Peel et al., 1974; Dawes, 1976). As a forerunner to GGU's forthcoming regional mapping project in northern Greenland, a reconnaissance tour to the Wandel Sea basin was attempted through the courtesy of the Royal Danish Air Force. However, due to partial failure in logistic support the field work was severely restricted and only part of the eastern Peary Land sequence was visited. Here only a single section was measured.