NSF Web Site
U.S . An tar ctic P ro gr am , 2 0 04 –
20 0 5
GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS
I. Ae ron o m y an d Astro p hy sics
A helico pter lifts off the ice a t
Bea rdm ore C amp in the Transanta rctic
Mountains. Altho ugh sk i-equipped C 130 a ir tra nspo rts a re used to m ov e
scie ntists and their e quipme nt to
remo te sites, U SAP o fte n uses
he licopters to suppor t lo cal fieldwo rk
fro m large field camps li ke Be ardmo re
Camp. ( NSF/ USA P pho to by K ristan
Hutchinso n, Ray the on Po lar Se rvice s
Corp.)
II . Bio log y an d Me di cin e
II I. Lo n g -Te rm Eco lo g ical
Rese arch
IV. O cea n an d C lim a te Sy stem s
V. G eo lo gy a nd G eo p hy sics
VI. Gl acio lo gy
VII . Arti sts an d W rite rs
Pr og ra m
PD F Ver sion
OP P h om e p ag e
Ant arcti c S cien ce s S ectio n
Po la r Re se ar ch S up p or t S ecti on
U.S . An n ua l An tar ctic T re aty
Ex cha n ge o f In fo rm a tio n
On this page:
z Ov erv iew
z Anta rctic m apping, geo de sy, ge ospatia l data , sate llite ima ge m apping, a nd
Anta rctic R esource Ce nter ma nageme nt.
z Age , o rigi n, and clima tic significa nce o f buried i ce i n the wester n Dry Va lleys,
Anta rctica.
z Magma tism in the Dr y Valle ys: A wo rksho p.
z The anta rctic sea rch fo r m eteo rite s ( ANSM ET).
z Ev olution and bio ge ography of Late Cr etace ous ver te brate s fro m the J ame s Ro ss
Basin, Antar ctic P eninsula .
z Colle ction of m arine geo phy sica l da ta on tra nsits of the Na tha nie l B. P alme r .
z Stability of landsca pe s a nd ice she ets in the Dry Vall eys, Anta rctica: A syste matic
study of expo sure a ges o f soils and surface depo si ts.
z Dry V alle y Seismic Pr oject.
z Tra nsa ntarctic Mountains De fo rma tion N etwo rk: Glo ba l po sitioning syste m ( GPS)
mea sure me nts of neo tecto nic mo tion in the antarctic interio r.
Mount Ere bus Volca no Obser vato ry a nd La bo ra tory ( MEVOL).
SHALDRI L, a dem onstratio n drilling cruise to the Ja me s Ro ss Ba sin.
Glo bal seismo gr aph statio n a t So uth P ole .
High-reso lutio n se ism ic to mo gra phy a nd ea rthquak e mo nito ring at Dece ptio n
Island vo lcano , Antar ctica .
z Unive rsity NAVS TAR Co nso rtium (U NAVC O) global positio ning sy stem surve y
suppo rt.
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Overview
Anta rctica is no t o nl y one of the wo rld's se ve n
co ntine nts, it a lso comprise s mo st o f o ne o f a
do zen m ajor crustal plates, a cco unting fo r a bo ut 9
pe rcent o f the Earth's co ntine nta l ( litho sphe ric)
cr ust. V ery little o f this la nd is v isible, ho wev er,
co ve red as it is by the v ast Ea st Anta rctic Ice
She et and the sma ller We st A nta rctic Ice She et.
These ice shee ts a ve rage som e 3 k ilome ters dee p
and form a v irtual va ult; 90 pe rcent o f the ice o n
Ea rth is he re . And it is hea vy , depressing the crust
be ne ath it so me 600 me ters (m) . The se phy sical
cha racte ristics, while not sta tic, a re cur rent. Yet
Anta rctica is a lso a time m achine, thank s to the
scie nce s o f geo logy a nd ge ophysics, powe red by
Ne ar the Bea rdm ore Gla cier in the
Tra nsa ntarctic Mo unta ins,
pa leo nto logists a nd geo logists se t
up a camp to study the ro ck in the
surro unding hills and pea ks. The
resea rch in 2003 unea rthed ne w
moder n instrum ents a nd info rmed by the para digm
of plate te ctonics/co ntinenta l drift.
dinosa ur bo ne s, ancie nt pl ants a nd
other clues to what Anta rctica was
like hundre ds of mill ions o f y ear s
ago. (NSF/ USA P pho to by K ristan
Hutchinso n, Ray the on Po lar
Serv ices Co rp.)
Ge olo gi sts hav e fo und e vidence that there wa s
once a fo re ste d supe rcontinent, which the y ca ll
Go ndwa nala nd, in the So uthe rn H emisphere .
Before the Ear th's constantly shifting plate
mov eme nt began to br ea k the co ntine nt up 150 millio n y ear s a go , Antar cti ca was a core
pie ce of this assem bly ; the l and adjoining it ha s since beco me Africa, Mada ga sca r, I ndia ,
Austra lia, and So uth Ame rica. Tho ugh the a ntarctic pla te has drifted south o nly about a
ce ntimete r a y ea r, geo logic ti me ev entually y ields ca taclysm ic re sults. The journey
mov ed the a nta rctic pla te into e ve r -co lder, high- latitude clima tes, a t a rate o f a bo ut 4°C
fo r e ach millio n ye ar s; e ve ntua lly co nditions cha nge d dram atically , a nd Anta rctica ar rive d
at a nea r- po lar positio n. This astounding sto ry —written in the langua ge o f ro ck and
fo ssil s— is lo cked in benea th the ice and the sea , a nd in the bedrock belo w bo th o f them.
As the ice she ets de ve loped, the y assumed, thro ugh the ir intera ction with o cea nic and
atmo spher ic circulatio n, what has beco me a k ey ro le in mo dula ting global clima te. A s a
bo nus, the So uth Po le prese nts a strate gic point to monito r the Ear th's seismic a ctiv ity.
Anta rctica is the highe st co ntinent on Ea rth ( about 2,150 m abo ve se a lev el), with its fa ir
sha re of mountains and vo lcano es; thus, many gene ric questio ns of inte rest to Earth
scie ntists wo rldwide also a pply to this r egion. So me specific issues of intere st to the
Anta rctic Ge olo gy a nd Geo physics Pro gram include the follo wing:
z de termining the tecto ni c ev olutio n o f Antarctica a nd its re latio nship to the
evo lution of the continents fro m Pre cam bria n time ( 600 millio n ye ar s a go ) to the
pre sent;
z de termining Anta rctica 's cr usta l structure;
z de termining ho w the dispe rsal of antarctic continental fragme nts ma y ha ve
affe cted the pale ocirculatio n o f the wor ld's o ceans, the e vo lutio n o f life, a nd the
glo ba l cli mate ( fro m prehisto ric tim es to the pre sent);
z reco nstructing a mo re deta iled histo ry of the ice shee ts, identifying geo logic
co ntrols to ice -she et be ha vio r, a nd defining geo logic responses to the ice she ets
on r egional a nd glo ba l scale s; and
z de termining the ev olutio n o f sedime nta ry basins within the co ntinent and a long
the co ntine nta l m argins.
These issues will all be com e clea rer as scientists im pro ve the ir mo dels of whe re, whe n,
and how crustal pla te mo ve ment wrought Antar ctica a nd its surro unding o cean ba sins.
The Antarctic Geol ogy a nd Ge ophysics Pro gr am funds inve stiga tions into the re latio nships
be twee n the ge olo gi c ev olutio n o f the antarctic pl ate and the life a nd pro cesse s that can
be deduced to a ccompa ny it — the pale ocircula ti on o f the wo rld's o ce ans, the pale oclima te
of the Ear th, and the ev olution of high- latitude bio ta. A curre nt em phasis is the W est
Anta rctic Ice S he et Pro gram , fo cused o n the smal ler of the continent's two ice she ets and
co nducted jo intly w ith the Glacio logy P rogra m. Se ve ral impo rtant r esea rch suppo rt
activitie s a re under way a s we ll:
z Meteorit es: In pa rtnership with the N atio nal Ae rona utics and Space
Adm inistra tion ( www -cura tor.jsc.nasa .go v/ cura tor/ antme t/a ntme t.htm ) and the
Smithso nian Institutio n, the pro gr am suppor ts me teo rite colle ction thro ugh the
antarctic sea rch for me teo rites (AN SMET) and chairs an intera gency comm ittee
tha t is responsible for cur ating a nd distributing sa mples of a nta rctic mete orite s.
z Mapping and geodes y: In pa rtnership with the U .S. Geo logica l Surv ey , the
pro gram suppo rts ma pping a nd ge odetic a ctiv ities as an investme nt in future
resea rch in ea rth science s. The U.S. Antar ctic Re sources Cente r ( USAR C,
http:/ /usarc.usgs.go v/ ) co nstitutes the U .S. Antar ctic Pr ogram 's co ntr ibution to
the Scie ntific Com mittee o n Antar ctic Re se ar ch library sy stem for e arth scie nce s;
ho use d here is the lar ge st co llection of antarctic a eria l photo gr aphs in the wo rld,
as well as ma ny m aps, sate llite ima ges, a nd a store house of ge odetic info rma tion.
z Marine sediment and geological drill c ores: In partne rship with the Antarctic
Mari ne Ge olo gy R esea rch F acility a t Flo rida Sta te Unive rsity ( www.arf.fsu.edu/ ),
the pro gra m ma na ge s a nd disse minate s ma rine sedime nt a nd geo logical drill
co re s mine d in Antar cti ca . The colle ctio n include s a n ar ray o f se dime nt co res as
well as ge olo gic drill co res fr om the Dr y Valle y Drilling Pr oject, the Ce no zoic
Inv estigatio ns o f the Ross Sea Drilling P ro gra m, and the Cape Ro berts Dr illing
Pro je ct. The facility fills requests fo r sa mples from r esea rchers wor ldwide a nd also
accom modate s v isiting re sea rche rs work ing onsite.
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Antarctic mapping, geodesy, geospatial data,
satellite image mapping, and Antarctic Resource
Center management.
Jerry L. M ullin s, U .S . Geolo gic al Survey.
Anta rctic m apping, geo de sy, ge ospatia l data , sa tellite ima ge ma pping, and the U .S.
Anta rctic R esource Ce nter (U SARC) co nstitute so me of the a ctivitie s nece ssa ry for the
successful o pe ratio n o f a multiface ted scie ntific a nd ex plo ra tory e ffo rt in Antarctica. Yea rround data a cquisition, ca talo gi ng, a nd da ta disse minatio n will co ntinue in the USA RC in
suppo rt of surv ey ing and ma pping. Fie ld surve ys are pla nne d as pa rt of a co ntinuing
pro gram to co llect the ground co ntro l da ta re quire d to tra nsfor m e xisting geo de tic da ta
into a n Ear th-ce ntere d system suitable for future sa tellite -mapping progra ms and to
reinforce e xtant contro l o f ma pping pro gra ms to suppo rt futur e scie ntific pr ogram s.
Landsa t ( Land R emo te - Sensing Sa tellite ) da ta will be co llecte d as funding pe rmits to
suppo rt sa te llite ima ge - mapping pro jects. The se ma ps will pro vide a basis for displa ying
ge olo gic and gla ci olo gic data in a spa tially a ccura te ma nne r fo r analy sis. The y will also
suppo rt future ex pe ditions by prov iding a ba sis fo r pla nning scientific inve stiga tions and
da ta co llection. In a ddition, spatia lly re fe renced digita l ca rtogra phic data wil l be produced
fro m publishe d ma ps.
Ge odetic projects are pla nned as pa rt of a co ntinuing progra m a imed at building a
co ntine nt- wide geo detic infra structure ( GI ANT) that will support a wide ra nge o f U.S. a nd
inte rnatio na l scie ntific re sea rch o bjectiv es by :
z establishing and ma intaining a fram ewo rk of pe rma ne nt geo de tic o bse rva torie s,
z exte nding a nd str engthe ning the e xisting netwo rk of sta tions linke d to the
Inte rnatio na l Te rrestria l Refer ence Fra me,
z establishing ge odetic coo rdina tes at identifia ble po ints for geo refer encing sate llite
image -mapping pro jects,
z maintaining a nd calibra ti ng ti de - ga uge instrumentatio n,
z ca rry ing out absolute grav ity mea sur eme nts,
z ca rry ing out absolute grav ity mea sur eme nts,
z expa nding the online ge ode ti c data ba se with new a nd histo rical data .
The geo de tic field pro gram is supporte d by a coo pe ra ti ve a rrangem ent with Land
Info rmatio n N ew Ze ala nd. ( G–052–M/P /S; N SF/ OP P 02–33246)
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Age, origin, and climatic significance of buried ice
in the western Dry Valleys, Antarctica.
David R. Marchan t, Bos ton Univers it y, and Joerg M. Sc haefer, Lamont -Doherty
Eart h Obs ervato ry, C olu mbia Univers it y.
Bur ied ice depo si ts re pre sent a po tentially fa r -rea ching a rchive o f atm osphe re a nd
clim ate o n Ear th ex tending ba ck many milli ons o f y ear s. The se de po sits a re ter restria l
analo gs to widesprea d a nd y oung burie d ice o n the Ma rtian surface a s ide ntified by
recent da ta from M ars Ody ssey. Just a s e arl ier rese arche rs a sked whether a clima te
reco rd wa s stor ed in the moder n ice sheets of Anta rctica a nd Gre enland, we now a sk
whe the r ancient, debris -co ve red gla ciers in the weste rn Dry Va lley s ho ld simila r r ecor ds
of te mpera tur e and a tmospheric cha nge , but o n time scal es tha t a re perhaps an o rder o f
magnitude grea ter than tho se fo r the dee pest e xisting ice co re.
The ice to be ex amine d is o ve r a millio n ye ar s o ld, mak ing it by far the oldest ice ye t
known on Ea rth. An a lterna tive v iew is that this buried ice is m ore re cent se gregatio n ice
fro m the in situ free zing of gro undwa ter. Distinguishing betwe en the se hypothe se s is ke y
to understa nding N eo ge ne cli mate change in Antar ctica .
Our re se ar ch is a ime d at:
z be tte r understa nding the surfa ce pr oce sse s that perm it ice prese rva tion,
z te sting the effica cy of co smoge nic and a rgon analy ses in dating tills abo ve bur ied
ice ,
z further asse ssing the use of cosmo ge nic-nuclide analy ses and a rgo n a nalyse s o f
ashfa ll de po sits to date buried ice, a nd
z using these data to he lp re solv e the deba te be twee n the yo ung a nd old i ce
sce na rio s note d e arlie r.
We will ana lyze a minimum o f six cosmo genic- de pth pro files to dete rmine if a nd ho w
cr yo turba ti on r ewo rks sublima tion tills a nd a sse ss the av er age rate o f subli matio n for
thre e glacier s. We wil l use finite -elem ent a naly se s to model a t le ast thre e bur ied glacie rs
and com pa re the flo w rate s with tho se based on radiom etric da ting of surface deposits.
We will also co llect 10 ice cor es.
Better unde rstanding of surface pro cesses abov e buri ed ice o n Ear th will pe rmit
resea rchers to gain access to a reco rd o f a tmospheric and clim ate change tha t co uld well
co ve r inte rva ls tha t preda te Qua ternar y time. Since the co nditio ns in the Dry Va lley s a re
analo go us to those fo und o n Ma rs, e xte nding the results co uld bring v aluable insight into
the pote nti al fo r life o n M ars. (G –054 –M; N SF/OP P 03–38291)
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Magmatism in the Dry Valleys: A workshop.
Bruc e D. Mars h, Jo hns Ho pkin s Univers ity.
The mo st challe nging a spe ct o f under sta nding m agma ti sm is that so little o f the
inte gra ted na ture of the full cy cle can be directly e xam ined in any re alistic co ntext.
Pla ne tary m agma tism is a multiface ted pro cess inv olv ing a spe ctrum o f interle av ed
che mical a nd physica l pro cesses respo nsible for the che mical tra nsfor matio n o f the initia l
prim itive ma gma into the final product. Each e sse nti al compo ne nt can be fo und we ll
expo se d so mewhe re on Ea rth, a nd ea ch has be en studied fo r ne arly a ce ntury , but
finding and study ing any re aso na ble exa mple of the e ntire proce ss in a fully integra ted
co ntext has pr ov en singula rly e lusiv e.
The Fe rrar dol erite s o f the McMurdo Dry Valle ys ex hibit in e xquisite e xposure s the three dime nsional structura l evo lution of a n e xtensive magma tic syste m tha t fo rmed 180
million ye ars ago . This syste m co ntains, o n a ma nagea ble sca le, all the e ssential fea ture s
of m ajor ma gm atic sy stems, which are se en only piecem ea l e lsewher e in the wo rld.
Because this unusua l a rea is so inacce ssible , we will hold a 2- wee k fie ld wo rkshop to
intro duce 20 to 25 rese archers to the wo nder s o f the McMurdo Dr y Valle ys, to stim ula te
cutting- edge re sea rch, and to deline ate the unso lve d problem s pose d by this ma gmatic
sy stem. This work ing confere nce w ill hav e discussio ns and la bo ra to ry wo rk a t McM ur do
Statio n and fiel dwo rk in the Dry Va lley s.
Four ma gm atic pro cesses will be co nside red:
z magma tra nspo rt a nd differ entiatio n in a mush column (East Bull Pa ss) ,
z cr ystal tra nspor t a nd sorting in po nding ma gma (Ea st Dais) ,
z so lidifica tion fro nt instability in sil ls (P andor a Spire /So litary R ocks) , and
z mechanics o f sill em pla ceme nt ( Victoria Va lle y and East Wright Va lley ).
To hav e the wide st po ssible impa ct, pa rticipants wi ll be re sea rche rs work ing on other
pa rts o f the Fe rrar sy ste m, se nio r re sea rche rs studying la ye red intrusio ns and basa ltic
sill s wo rldwide , y oung re se ar che rs studying ma gm atic pro cesse s, re sea rche rs studying
ocea n ridge ma gma cha mbers and me lt she ets, a nd graduate students in igneo us
pe trolo gy . U nde rgr adua tes ma y also be invo lve d. The wo rksho p is inte nded to he lp
enuncia te a spe cific fundam ental theme co mmo n to a ll m agma tic proce sses, to
understa nd the regio na l dy na mics of the Fe rra r- Tra nsa ntarctic magma tic prov ince, a nd
to stim ul ate scientists to ne w ho rizons thro ugh e xposure to a singula r fie ld a rea . (G –
056 –M; NSF /OP P 02–29306)
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The antarctic search for meteorites (ANSMET).
Ralph P. Harvey, Case Wes tern Res erve Univers it y.
Since 1976, ANSM ET (the antar cti c sea rch for m eteo rites progra m) has reco ve red mor e
tha n 14,000 me teo rite spe cime ns fr om lo catio ns a long the Transantar cti c Mo unta ins.
Anta rctica is the wo rld's prem ier me teo rite hunting ground for two re aso ns:
z First, a ltho ugh mete ori te s fa ll a t ra ndo m all ov er the globe, the like lihoo d o f
finding one is e nha nce d if the back gr ound ma teria l is plain and the accumula ti on
rate o f ter restria l sedime nt is low; this mak es the Ea st Antar ctic Ice Shee t the
pe rfe ct m edium .
z Second, a long the ma rgins of the shee t, ice flo w i s som etime s block ed by
mountains, nuna tak s, and o ther obstructions; thi s e xpose s slow -mov ing or
sta gna nt ice to the fie rce ka taba ti c winds, which ca n deflate the ice surfa ce and
expo se a lag de po sit o f me teo rites (a r eprese nta tive por tion of those tha t we re
sprinkle d thro ughout the v olume o f ice lo st to the wind) . W he n such a proce ss
co ntinue s for mille nnia , a specta cula r co ncentratio n o f me teo rites can be unve iled.
The continue d re cov ery o f a nta rctic m eteo rite s is of gre at va lue beca use they a re the
only cur rently a vail able source o f new, nonmicro scopic extr ater restria l m ate rial. As such,
the y pro vide e sse nti al "ground truth" about the co mpositio n o f aste roids, planets, and
other bodies of our sola r sy stem. ANSM ET reco ve rs sa mple s fro m the a stero ids, the
Moo n, and M ars for a tiny fr action o f the cost of re turning sa mples directly from these
bo die s.
During the 2004 –2005 field se aso n, AN SMET's ma in field par ty ( eight peo ple ) will work
at the La Pa z i ce fi elds, approx ima tely 250 mile s fro m Amundsen –Sco tt South P ole
Statio n. Mor e tha n 1,000 me teo rites wer e reco ve red fro m the site during vi sits in 1991,
2002, a nd 2003. This ye ar's field te am will continue sy stema tic se arche s o f the icefields
in an effo rt to reco ve r a repre se ntative sa mple of the ex trate rre str ial ma te ria l falli ng to
Ea rth.
A se co nd tea m consisting of fo ur peo pl e will co nduct high- leve l re connaissance a t a
number o f icefields thro ugho ut the midrange of the Tr ansantar ctic Mo unta ins. The tea m
ha s thre e go als:
z to se ar ch fo r new mete or ite str andi ng surface s,
z to fully e xplore the pote ntia l of po orly k nown mete orite sites, and
z to wrap up colle ctio n e ffo rts a t site s wher e a full sea son by a la rge tea m is
logistically not practica l.
The tea m will visit po orly k nown or prev iously unv isited ice fie lds, reco ver ing mete or ites
and identify ing their potentia l for mo re deta iled se ar che s dur ing future sea sons. In
ge ne ral, the team will mo ve fro m so uth to north, sta rting nea r Z anev eld Gla cier and
ending ne ar Buckley Island, with v ary ing lengths of sta y at ke y sites and co nsta nt re ­
eva luatio n o f pr ioritie s depe nding o n the density of mete ori te finds, icefield conditio ns,
and lo gistica l nee ds.
The tea m will ge ne ral ly mov e betwee n ta rget site s a nd cam ps by plane. On a few
occasio ns, the te am will use a "flying tr ave rse," wher e the pla ne fer ries the ge ar while
the te am tra vel s by snowm obile. This sty le of trav erse wo rk s we ll fo r ta rgets tha t a re
link ed by a sa fe r oute and a re re lativ ely clo se to gether (> 30 k ilome ters) . The fie ld tea m
will a lso be able to tra ve rse such ro utes i n em ergencies. (G–058–M; NSF /OP P 99–80452)
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Evolution and biogeography of Late Cretaceous
vertebrates from the James Ross Basin, Antarctic
Peninsula.
Judd A. Cas e, Saint Mary's C ollege of C alifornia, and James E. Martin, S outh
Dakota Sch ool of Mines and Tech nology.
The Ca mpanian thro ugh the M aa strichtia n Ages (80 to 65 millio n y ear s a go ) ar e
impo rta nt in the history o f v erte bra te biogeo gr aphy ( dispersa ls a nd separa tions due to
mov ing landmasse s) and ev olutio n betwe en Anta rctica and the re st o f the Southern
He misphe re. Mo re ov er, unre so lve d questions in pale ontolo gy rela te to the dispe rsal o f
te rre strial ve rtebra tes such a s dinosa ur s a nd mar supial ma mma ls fro m No rth Am erica to
Anta rctica and bey ond to A ustra lia via P ata go nia and the Antarctic Pe ninsula, as well as
the dispe rsal o f mo dern birds fro m Antarctica nor thwa rd. Dispe rsals include v erte bra tes
in ma rine settings as well. Both widely distribute d and lo calize d ma rine reptile species
ha ve bee n identified in Anta rctica, cre ating que stions about the ir dispersa l in conjunction
with te rrestria l anima ls.
The We ddel lian P ale obio ge ogra phic Pro vince ex tends from P ata go nia thro ugh the
Anta rctic P eninsula and we ste rn Anta rctica to Austr alia a nd Ne w Ze ala nd. Within this
pro vince lie the dispe rsal ro ute s for intercha nges of ve rtebrate s betwe en South Am erica
and Ma da gascar a nd India, and al so Austra lia. On the ba sis o f o ur pre vious wor k, we
the orize tha t a n isthmus betwe en m ore no rthern South Am erica a nd the Antar ctic cra to n
bro ught ty pica l No rth Am erica n dino saurs, such a s hadro saurs (duck -bille d dino saurs) ,
and presuma bly m arsupials tra ve ling ov erla nd and m arine re ptile s swim ming alo ng
co asta l w ater s to Antar cti ca in the late Cr etace ous. This re gi on a lso ser ved as the cra dle
fo r the e vo lutio n, if no t the or igin, o f groups o f mo dern birds a nd the e vo lution o f ty pica l
Southern He misphe re pl ants.
To co nfirm a nd expa nd on the se hy po theses, we will continue o ur inve stiga tions into la te
Creta ceo us ma rine and te rrestria l de po sits in the J ame s R oss B asin. We ha ve pre vio usly
reco ver ed the follo wing v erte bra tes fr om these sedime nta ry deposits: plesio saur and
mosa saur ma rine re ptile s; pla nt -eating dinosa ur s; a mea t- eating dinosa ur ; and a v arie ty
of m odern bir d groups, including shore bir ds, wading bi rds, a nd lagoo nal bir ds. Mor eov er ,
we rece ntly discov ere d the bones of what we belie ve to be a n entire ly new spe cies of
ca rnivo ro us dinosaur —one rel ated to tyra nno saurs and ve locir aptors. These a nim als
evide ntly survi ved in the Antarctic, which the n had a clima te simila r to tha t o f the Pa cific
No rthw est, lo ng after they had be en succee de d by other pre da tors else where .
Our re se ar ch will result in impor tant insights into the e vo lution a nd ge ogra phic dispersa l
of se ver al ve rtebra te spe ci es. W e will co llabora te with scie ntists fr om the Instituto
Ant á rtico Argentino a nd with ve rtebra te pa leo ntolo gists fr om the Museo de La P lata , both
in the fie ld a nd at our respectiv e institutions in Arge ntina a nd the U nite d Sta te s. ( G–061–
E; N SF/ OP P 00–03844 and N SF/ OPP 00–87972)
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Collection of marine geophysical data on transits
of the Nathaniel B. Palmer.
Joann M. S tock, Califo rn ia Inst it ut e of Tech nology, and St even C. Cand e, Sc ripps
Inst it ution of Oc ean ography, U niversity of California –San Dieg o.
Well - co nstr ained pla te reco nstr uctio ns o f the antarctic regio n a re critical for ex am ining a
number o f problem s o f global geo phy sica l impo rta nce . During this 3- yea r pr oject, we w ill
addre ss questions about the m otio n history o f the antar cti c a nd other plate s a nd improv e
pla te reco nstructio ns by surv ey ing gr avity , ma gne tics, a nd swath ba thy metry o n thre e
se lecte d transit cruise s by the U.S. re sea rch icebre ak er Na tha nie l B. P alme r .
In July a nd August 2004 dur ing a transit (cruise NBP 04 –06) from Ca pe tow n, South
Africa , to Auckla nd, Ne w Z eal and, we will sur vey i n the India n Ocea n a nd the Ta sm an
Sea sev er al majo r fea tures of the Africa a nd Austra lia plate s that re late to their history of
spre ading awa y from the Antarctic Pla te. These include fra cture zo ne s, part of the B rok en
Ridge a nd Dia ma ntina fracture zo ne s so uthea st o f Australi a, a nd Ceno zoic ma gnetic
anom alie s form ed by the spr ea ding o f the Caprico rn a nd Austr alia plate s a way fro m
Anta rctica.
During J anuary a nd Februa ry 2005 during the transit fro m McMurdo Sta tion to Punta
Arenas, Chile (cruise N BP 05–01), pr oject team me mbers will sur vey se ve ral ma jo r
fe atures of the Anta rctic P late , including fra cture zo nes, the fossil spre ading syste m in
the Adar e Ba sin, and Ce nozo ic ma gne tic a no ma lies fo rme d by the spre ading of the
Austra lia P late a way fro m W est Anta rctica.
These data w ill be used in combinatio n with GP S -na vigate d data from the P itman fra cture
zo ne, a t the so uthwe ste rn e nd of the pla te bounda ry, and m agne tic a noma lies from
pre vio us cruises ne ar the Me nard Fracture Zo ne to impro ve high -pre cision pla te
reco nstructions a nd eva luate the limits of po ssible inte rna l de fo rma tion of the P acific a nd
antarctic pla tes in this se ctor.
Our re sults will co ntribute to k no wle dge o f pla te kine matics and dynam ics, and
litho sphe ric rhe olo gy . Mo re ov er, we will inte gr ate re sea rch and e duca tion by te aching 2
on -bo ard mar ine ge ophy sics cla sse s to a to tal o f 30 graduate a nd undergra dua te
students ( some o f them minor ities). Classe s will co nsist of da ily lectures abo ut the
instrume nts and the data they r eco rd. In a dditio n, ea ch student will spend sev era l ho urs
a da y standi ng watch a nd pr ocessing data a nd will a lso wo rk on an indiv idual
independent rese arch pro je ct. ( G–071–N; N SF/OP P 03–38317 and N SF/ OPP 03 –38346)
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Stability of landscapes and ice sheets in the Dry
Valleys, Antarctica: A systematic study of
exposure ages of soils and surface deposits.
Jaakko P utk onen, U niversity of Wash in gton .
The nea r -pe rfe ct pre se rv atio n of ancient, in situ v olcanic a sh and o ve rlying se dim ents
sugge sts that hypera rid co ld co nditions hav e pr ev aile d in the McMurdo Dry Va lley s for
ove r 10 millio n y ea rs. The surv iva l o f these se dim ents a lso suggests tha t wa rm -ba sed ice
ha s not ente red the v alle y system a nd tha t ice shee t e xpansio n has bee n minima l.
Ho wev er, other ev idence suggests tha t the Dry Val leys hav e ex pe rience d considera bly
more se diment ero sion tha n is gener ally belie ve d:
z The cosmo genic e xposure a ge s o f boulders and be dro ck all show gener ally
younger ages than v olca ni c a sh de posits use d to dete rmine the minimum ages of
mora ines and drifts.
z There appe ars to be a discr epancy be twee n the suggeste d e xtre me prese rva tion
of unconsolida te d slo pe depo sits (m ore tha n 10 m illion yea rs) and a dja cent
be dro ck that ha s e ro de d 2.6 to 6 me ters duri ng the sa me interv al.
The fact tha t till and m ora ine ex po sur e ages ge nera lly po stda te the ov erly ing vo lcanic
ash depo sits (a cle ar co ntra di ctio n) could re fle ct e xpansio n of the co nti ne nta l ice she et
into the Dry Va lley s with co ld -ba sed ice , thus both pre serv ing the la ndsca pe a nd
shie lding the surfaces fr om co sm ic ra diatio n. Ano ther plausible e xplanatio n o f the yo ung
co smo ge nic ex posure ages is ero sion of the sedime nts a nd gra dua l e xhumatio n o f
fo rme rly burie d boulders.
We will me asure the accumulatio n o f multiple co smo ge ni c iso to pes in rock a nd sediment
pro fi les to de term ine the minimum e xposure a ge s, degree o f so il sta bility o r mixi ng, a nd
shie lding histor y of surfaces by co ld-ba sed ice to o bta in unam biguous m inim um a ge s fo r
de po sits. In a dditio n, we should be able to identify are as disturbed by pe riglacia l a ctivity ,
co nstr ain the tim ing of such a ctivity, and a cco unt for the pa tchy pre serv atio n of
impo rta nt stratigra phic ma rke rs such a s v olca nic a sh.
In a co mple x la ndscape such as the M cMurdo Dr y Valle ys, individua l expo sure analy ses
will se ldo m gi ve una mbiguo us a ge s for the sur fa ces. By co ntrast, o ur a ppro ach of loo king
at ver tica l profile s a nd multiple iso topes at a few sites will be co nside rably mo re
infor mativ e. The re sult will be a be tte r understa nding o f the stability o f the Ea st Anta rctic
Ice She et, which could fundam entally change ho w we vie w the dynam ics o f So uther n
He misphe re clima te on time sca les of millions of yea rs. ( G–076 –M; NSF /OP P 03–38224)
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Dry Valley Seismic Project.
Rob ert C . Kemerait, U.S. Air Force Tech nical Applic ations Cen ter.
One re cur rent issue in se ismo gra phy is noise : tha t is, ba ckground phenome na tha t ca n
inte rfe re with clear a nd pr ecise re adings. The Dry Va lley Se ismic Pro je ct, a co opera tive
underta king with the N ew Ze ala nd Anta rctic Pro gr am, was esta blished to reco rd
bro adband, high-dy na mic -range, digital seismic data from the re mo te Wright Va lley , a
site r emo ve d from the env ironme nta l and a nthro po ge nic noise tha t is ubiqui to us o n Ro ss
Island.
The Wri ght V alle y site pro vide s o ne o f the fe w loca tions o n the co ntinent with direct
access to be dr ock. The sta ti on the re consists o f a tria xia l bro adba nd bore ho le
se ismo mete r [ 100 mete rs (m) dee p] a nd a ve rtical sho rt- pe riod instrume nt a t 30 m . The
se ismo logical data a re digitize d a t the re mote lo catio n, tele mete red by r epea ters o n
Mount N ewa ll and Cr ater H ill, a nd rece ive d ev entually by the re cording com pute r a t the
Ha the rton Labo rato ry at Scott Ba se , whe re a back up archive is cre ated.
Fro m H athe rton, they pa ss a long a point -to -po int proto col link to the Internet a t
McMurdo Statio n a nd the nce to the Albuque rque Se ismolo gical Labo rato ry for genera l
distribution to the interna tional seism olo gica l co mmunity. This da ta set ha s bea utifully
co mplem ented the data fro m other seism ic statio ns o pe ra te d by the Albuquer que
Seismo logical La bo ra tory a t Am undsen –Sco tt South P ole Sta tion, P alm er Statio n, and
Case y, a n Australi an ba se . ( G–078–M; N SF/OP P–Do D MOA)
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Transantarctic Mountains Deformation Network:
Global positioning system (GPS) measurements
of neotectonic motion in the antarctic interior.
Terry J . Wils on and Dorota Brz ezinska, Ohio Stat e Un iversity, and Larry D.
Hoth em, U.S . Geological Su rvey –Denver.
We will conduct gl obal po sitioning sy ste m (GPS ) mea sur eme nts of bedro ck cr usta l
motio ns in a n e xte nsio n o f the Tra nsa ntarctic Mo unta ins Defor matio n N etwo rk (TAMDEF)
to do cum ent ne otecto nic displa ceme nts cause d by te ctonic de fo rma tion within the West
Anta rctic R ift or ma ss changes in the antar cti c ice shee ts. By mo nitoring the U .S. and
Italia n netwo rks of be dr ock GPS statio ns a long the Transantar cti c Mo unta ins and o n
offshor e islands in the Ro ss Se a, we will tightly constra in hor izontal displa ceme nts
rela ted to a ctive neo tecto nic rifting, strik e- slip transla ti ons, and v olcanism. We will use
GP S -de rive d crustal mo ti ons, to ge the r with inform atio n fr om o the r pro grams o n the ice
she ets a nd from o ngo ing structur al and se ismic inv estigatio ns in Victo ria La nd, to m odel
gla cio -iso static adjustme nts due to de gla ciatio n a nd to mode rn ma ss changes in the ice
she ets. The inte gr ative and iter ativ e na tur e of this m odeling wil l y ield a ho listic
inte rpr eta ti on o f neo tecto nics a nd ice she et histo ry that will he lp us discrimina te tectonic
cr usta l displacem ents fro m viscoe lastic/e lastic gl acio - iso static mo tions.
We will do repea t surv ey s o f ke y sites so uthwa rd a bout 250 k ilome ters alo ng the
Tra nsa ntarctic Mountains. These me asurem ents will cro ss gradients in predicted ver tical
motio n due to v isco ela stic re bound. The southwar d ex tension will a lso a llow us to
de termine the southern limit of the a ctive Terr or Rift a nd pr ov ide a bette r ba se line fo r
co nstr aints o n a ny ongo ing tecto ni c displa ceme nts a cr oss the W est Anta rctic R ift system
as a who le. Further , we will inve sti ga te unique aspects o f GP S geo desy in Antar ctica to
de termine ho w the er ror spectrum compa res with that found in m id-latitude r egions and
to ide ntify o ptim um me asure ment a nd da ta pr oce ssing m ethods. The ge odetic rese arch
will im pr ove positio n a ccura cies withi n our netwo rk and w ill a lso yie ld gener al
reco mme ndatio ns for o the r de fo rma tion -monito ring ne two rks in pola r re gio ns.
An educatio n and o utrea ch progra m targete d at Ohio State U niv ersity unde rgraduate s
who a re not science ma jo rs will il lum ina te the rese ar ch pr ocess fo r nonscientists. This
effo rt w ill e duca te stude nts abo ut science and inform them a bo ut Anta rctica and how it
rela tes to glo bal sci ence issue s. (G –079–M; NSF /OP P 02–30285 and N SF/OP P 02–30356)
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Mount Erebus Volcano Observatory and
Laboratory (MEVOL).
Philip R. Kyle an d Rich ard C . Aster, N ew M exico Ins titu te o f Mining and
Techn olog y.
Mount Ere bus, Anta rctica's most activ e vo lca no, is a ra re e xa mple o f a persiste ntly a ctive
magma tic syste m. This v olca no , which ha s a history o f lo w -leve l erupti ve activ ity
associa ted wi th a highly a cce ssible summ it v ent co mplex , also fe atures one o f Earth's
fe w lo ng-lived lav a lak es. W e ar e de ve loping an inte rdisciplina ry
ge ophysics/geo che mistry la bo rato ry o n Mo unt Erebus to pursue ba sic re sea rch o n the
eruptio n physics and asso ciate d ma gm atic recharge o f a ctiv e vo lcano es. Ere bus is
espe cially a ppro priate beca use of its persiste nt ope n-co nduit magma tic sy ste m, fre que nt
eruptio ns, ea se of a cce ss ( by a nta rctic sta nda rds) , a nd established scie ntific and
logistical infra structure , including re al - tim e da ta links and re lativ e safety .
The ke y integrate d data - ga the ring com po nents we wi ll re ly o n include v ide o surve illance
and seism ic, infra sound, Do pple r radar , infrare d, vo lcanic ga s, and geo detic studies. To
co llect the da ta, a co mbi na tion of co re Mo unt Erebus Vo lcano Obse rv ator y and
Labor ator y ( MEVOL)- suppo rte d pe rso nnel a nd the ir students ( with specia lties in
se ismo logy, ga s studie s, a nd ge ne ra l v olca no logy ) will co llabo rate with inte rnatio na lly
reco gnized vo lcano re se ar che rs ( with specia lties in infr are d, Do pple r radar , ga s studies,
and infraso und).
We will the n dev elo p qua ntitativ e model s o f the magma tic sy ste m o f an activ e vo lca no,
including eruptive e ne rgy ba lance (gra vity ; e xplosiv e ga s deco mpressio n; a nd therm al,
se ismic, a coustic, a nd k ine tic co mponents) and m agma re cha rge (v olca nic trem or,
co nve ctio n, re side nce tim e, ga s e missions, a nd de fo rma tion) . We e xpect this re sea rch to
co ntribute substa nti ally to basic know ledge o f a ctive v olcano es aro und the wo rld.
Ano ther pa rt of o ur work inv olv es a pro ject to de ve lop a nd deploy integra ted lo w -po wer,
low -co st, re al - tim e- te lem eter ed v olca no mo nitoring sta tions a t Ere bus and o the r active
volca noe s. (Ma ny v olcano es, pa rticula rly in the dev elo pi ng world, ha ve little o r no
moder n instrum entatio n.) The go al is to contribute to the dev elo pm ent o f lo w -po wer,
low -co st inte rdisciplinary ge ophy sical o bse rva torie s w ithin the la rger seism olo gy ,
ge odesy , and geo phy sical co mmunities.
Our wo rk also include s the e ducatio n o f graduate a nd unde rgraduate stude nts in
volca nolo gy a nd geo physics, the dissemina tion o f inform atio n to high scho ol a udiences,
and the prov ision of yea r -round mo ni to ring inform atio n to the Na tiona l Scie nce
Founda tion and to M cMurdo Statio n. Finally , to co nv ey the e xcitem ent a nd rele va nce of
volca nolo gy a nd othe r a spe cts o f ea rth science to so ci ety, we ex pe ct to co nti nue public
outrea ch through le cture s, me dia inte ractio n, and inqui ry response . (G –081–M; NSF /OP P
02 –29305)
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SHALDRIL, a demonstration drilling cruise to the
James Ross Basin.
John B. Anderson , Ric e Un iversity; Patricia Man ley, Middlebury Co llege; an d
Sherwood W . Wise Jr., Florid a St ate Univers ity.
For o ve r thre e de cades, U.S. scientists a nd their internatio nal co llea gues ex plo ring the
sha llow shelve s a nd sea s a long the ma rgins o f Antarctica hav e been consistently
frustra te d by their inability to penetr ate the ov erco mpacte d gl acial diam icto ns
encounte re d at shallo w subbottom depths ( withi n the upper 10 me ters) o ve r the se
te rra ins. This ha s bee n par ticula rly frustr ating because a dv anced high-reso lutio n se ism ic
reflectio n technique s clea rly show the prese nce o f o lde r succe ssio ns o f N eoge ne a nd
eve n P ale ogene sequences lying just benea th this thin v enee r of dia mictons in ma ny
are as. U nti l the me ans to r ecov er these se quences ar e de ve loped, a deta iled histo ry of
the a nta rctic ice she ets —an e ssential prer equisite to understa nding Ce no zoic
pa leo climate s a nd future clima te cha nge o n a glo ba l sca le —will r ema in a n elusiv e and
unobta ina bl e go al.
A gro up of U .S. scientists ca lled the SH ALDRIL Co mmitte e has identified a t le ast two
dia mond co ring syste ms de eme d suitable for use on ex isting U .S. Antar ctic Re se ar ch
Pro gr am ships. W e will use o ne o f these sy ste ms on the re sea rch ice bre ak er Na tha nie l B.
Pal mer to dem onstrate the fea sibility o f both ship -ba sed diam ond co ring and dow nho le
logging. W e will co re a long a high- reso lutio n sei sm ic re fl ection dip line off Se ymo ur
Island, Antarctic Pe ninsula, a n ar ea o f high scientific intere st in its o wn right. H ere the
well -de fined ge olo gic sectio n is estima ted to range fr om Eoce ne to Quate rnary in age,
effe cti vely spa nning the "gree nho use -ice house" tra nsitio n in the e vo lution o f
antarctic/glo ba l cli mate . A comple te re cord of this transition has yet to be obtaine d fr om
anywher e alo ng the antar ctic ma rgin.
We will corr ela te the r ecor d we o bta in with de taile d fl uctuatio ns o f the ice mar gin
recently re corde d at higher la titude s in the e aster n Ro ss Se a. I f succe ssful, SH ALDRIL
will be a ble to further e xplore the gap in o ur technical capability to e xplor e the a ntarctic
she lves betwe en the shore line/ fa st- ice margin a nd the continental slo pe . This
te chno logical brea kthro ugh wi ll no t o nly a ddre ss m ajor o utsta nding scientific issues of
the past thr ee deca de s, but will a lso fa vo rably a ffect ma ny o ther cur rent antarctic or
drilli ng -rela ted initia tives. (G –083–N; N SF/OP P 01–25922, NSF /OPP 01–25480, and
NSF/ OPP 01 –25526)
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Global seismograph station at South Pole.
Rh ett G. But ler, In corporated Research Ins titu tions for Seismology.
Seismo logy, pe rhaps a s m uch as any othe r scie nce , is a glo bal e nte rprise. S eismic wav es
resulting fr om ea rthqua ke s a nd other e vents can be interpre ted o nly thr ough
sim ulta neo us me asurem ents a t stra tegic points all ov er the pla net. The me asurem ent
and ana lysis o f these seism ic wa ve s a re not only fundame ntal fo r the study of
ear thquak es, but they a lso serv e as the pri mary da ta source for the study o f the Earth's
inte rior . To he lp e sta blish the fa cilities re quire d for this crucia l scientific m issio n, IRI S
(the Inco rpora ted Re sea rch Institutio ns for Se ismolo gy) wa s cre ate d in 1985.
IRIS is a co nso rtium of unive rsities with r esea rch a nd e ducatio nal pr ogram s in
se ismo logy. Ninety -se ve n uni ver si ti es a re curre ntly m ember s, incl uding nea rly all U .S.
unive rsities that ha ve sei sm olo gica l resea rch pro gr ams. Since 1986, IRIS, thr ough a
co ope rativ e agree me nt with the N atio na l Science Fo undatio n (N SF) a nd in co ope ratio n
with the U.S. Ge olo gica l Surv ey ( USGS) , has de ve loped a nd insta lled the Glo ba l
Seismo gr aphi c N etwo rk (GSN ), w hich no w ha s a bo ut 137 broa dba nd, digital, highdy na mic -range seismo gr aphic statio ns a round the wo rld; m ost of the se ha ve re al -tim e
co mmunicatio ns.
The GSN seism ic e quipment at Amundsen –Sco tt South P ole Sta tion a nd at Pa lmer
Statio n was installe d jo intly by IRIS and U SGS, which co ntinue to jo intly oper ate a nd
maintain them. The GSN sites in Antar ctica a re v ital to seismic studie s o f Antarctica a nd
the So uthe rn H emisphere , a nd the y contribute to the inte rna tiona l mo nitoring sy stem of
the Co mpre he nsiv e Te st Ba n Tre aty. The state -of- the -art seismic instr um entatio n is an
intrinsic compone nt o f the NSF e ffor t to a dv ance seism olo gy a nd ea rth scie nce global ly.
In 2003, with the co mpletio n o f the South P ole R emo te Earth Scie nce a nd Seism olo gica l
Obser vatio n ( SPR ESSO) in the Quie t Se cto r, the GSN seismi c instrumentatio n wa s m ov ed
to the SP RESSO site , 8 k ilome ters from the Po le, and deplo yed into 300- mete r de ep
bo reho les in the ice belo w the firn. The ne w GS N site, QSP A, a chie ve s the quietest
co nditio ns o n Earth at fr eque ncie s a bove 1 hertz. ( G–090–P/S; NSF/ EAR 00 –04370)
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High -resolution seismic tomography and
earthquake monitoring at Deception Island
volcano, Antarctica.
William Sam Do uglas Wilc ock, Un iversity of W ash ing ton .
De ception Island v olcano , lo cated in Bra nsfie ld Stra it, is an a ctiv e, ba ck- arc
str atov olca no with a floo ded ca lde ra . All historica l erupti ons ha ve o ccurre d nea r the r ing
fra ctur e and e xtended a ro und the ca lde ra. The three m ost rece nt, in 1967 –1970, a re
unusua l in tha t each inv olv ed simultaneo us er uptions fr om multiple ve nts.
Altho ugh the v olca no ha s no t e rupted fo r 30 ye ars, it is still v ery a ctive, but the size ,
distribution, a nd inte rconnectiv ity of subsurface m agma bodies and thei r r elatio nship to
resurgence, the e ruptio ns, and the di str ibution and sty le of fa ulting a re poo rly
co nstr ained. On the o ne ha nd, che mical differ ences be twee n lav as wo ul d be be st
expla ine d if the e ruptio ns wer e fe d by isola ted shallo w intrusiv e po ds, but the ir
sy nchro nicity and distributio n suggest that the y ma y ha ve bee n drive n by an ex tensive
magma body unde rlying the cal de ra. On the other hand, a re cent m odel suggests that
the ca lde ra wa s for med by pro gre ssive passiv e exte nsi on r ather than catastro phic
co lla pse a nd implies tha t m agma ma y be less wide ly distribute d under ne ath.
Many ex perim ents hav e mo nito red seismicity a t De ce ptio n I sla nd, but they hav e all bee n
sm all and la cke d sea flo or sta tions. We will there fo re deplo y a jo int ma rine- land seism ic
ne twork a ro und Dece ptio n Isla nd fo r an antarctic sum mer to m onitor seism icity and to
co nduct a high -reso lutio n a ctive -so urce tom ography ex pe rime nt. Our go als are to
understa nd:
z the distributio n o f ma gm a and its rela tionship to re cent v olcanic activ ity,
z the re sur ge nce in the no rthea ste rn po rtion of the ca lde ra, a nd
z the distributio n o f faulting and the state o f stre ss a nd its re latio nship to vo lca nic
and tecto ni c proce sses.
We will colla bo ra te with a Spanish gro up and joi n cruises on the Spanish r esea rch ships
He sp éride s a nd Las Pa lmas . We will contribute 14 sho rt- pe riod, 3- co mpone nt oce an
bo ttom sei sm ome ters (OBSs) fo r the 10- wee k de plo ym ent o f a n ea rthqua ke netwo rk
co mprising these OBSs and a bo ut 10 la nd statio ns; so me o f these will include both sho rtpe riod and broa dba nd seismo me te rs. This will be fo llow ed by the active so urce
exper iment using the a irgun arra y on the He sp éride s to shoo t to a ve ry de nse land
ne twork a nd to the OBS site s. The P -wav e tomo graphic ima ge of the v olcano we obtain
will cla rify the r ela tionshi p be twee n the seismic structur e, the distributio n a nd na tur e of
ear thquak es, a nd vo lcanic proce sses at De ception Island v olca no . ( G–135–E; N SF/ OP P
02 –30094)
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University NAVSTAR Consortium (UNAVCO)
global positioning system survey support.
Bjorn John s, U NAVC O.
UN AVCO i s a nonprofit, m embe rship -go ve rne d co nso rtium funde d thro ugh the N atio na l
Sci ence Foundatio n and the N atio na l Aero nautics a nd Spa ce Administr atio n (N ASA) to
suppo rt and pro mote high- pre cision mea sur eme nt technique s for the adva nce me nt of
ear th sciences. UN AVCO pro vide s co mple te suppor t for perm anent sta tions, surve ying,
mapping, a nd other a pplica tio ns o f the Global Po sitioning Sy ste m (GPS ) to U.S. Anta rctic
Pro gr am inve stiga tors and m aintains a sa te llite facility with a full range of ge odetic GPS
equipme nt a nd suppo rt se rvice s a t M cM ur do S ta tion during the a ustra l summ er re sea rch
se aso n.
A la rge po ol o f high -pre cision GP S rece iver s a nd associa ted e quipment is pro vided fo r
sho rt -te rm surve ys thro ugh multiye ar da ta co llection in Antar ctica . Re gula r equipme nt
upgrades ensure a stea dy influx o f mo dern equipme nt, including:
z sta te -of- the -art dua l- fre que ncy GP S re ceiv ers,
z po wer a nd co mmunicatio n sy ste ms fo r remo te lo ca tions,
z GP S monument and a nte nna m ount o ptio ns, and
z accesso ries fo r kinem atic and re al -tim e kinem atic (RTK) surve ys.
UN AVCO sta ff pro vide s y ear - round suppor t to help ensure the success o f field pro jects
and subse quent da ta ma na ge me nt. The le vel o f suppor t is sca lable a nd includes:
z surv ey planning,
z fie ld surve y and data pro cessing trai ning,
z custom e nginee ring so lutio ns,
z sy stem integratio n,
z fie ld assista nce ,
z GP S sta tion mainte na nce , a nd
z da ta retrie va l, flow mo nitoring, pro ce ssing, a nd ar chiv ing.
UN AVCO a lso o pe rate s a co mmunity RTK GP S ba se sta tion tha t co ve rs McM ur do Sta tion
and prov ide s m aintena nce suppo rt to the N ASA GPS Globa l N etwo rk statio n M CM4 a t
Arriva l He ights. ( G–295–M; NSF /EAR 03–21760)
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