Central Scotia Seafloor and the Drake Passage Deep Ocean Current Gateway

本项目通过海洋地球物理调查和疏浚海底玄武岩地球化学研究相结合的方法，研究南美洲和南极洲之间的德雷克海峡的开通。确定这条通道开通的时间是了解环南极洋流形成的关键。环南极洋流在全球海洋环流中起着重要作用，它的形成与南极冰盖的生长有关。疏浚样本将进行各种地球化学研究，以确定它们的年龄，并限制该地区下方的地幔流动。更广泛的影响包括支持研究生教育，以及本科生和K12教师参与研究巡航。该项目还涉及与英国的国际合作，是国际极地年项目#77：板块之门的一部分，该项目旨在重建极地海洋盆地的地质历史和计算机模拟气候变化的门户。更多信息请参见http://www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/plates_gates/。

This project studies the opening of the Drake Passage between South America and Antarctica through a combined marine geophysical survey and geochemical study of dredged ocean floor basalts. Dating the passage's opening is key to understanding the formation of the circum-Antarctic current, which plays a major role in worldwide ocean circulation, and whose formation is connected with growth of the Antarctic ice sheet. Dredge samples will undergo various geochemical studies to determine their age and constrain mantle flow beneath the region. Broader impacts include support for graduate education, as well as undergraduate and K12 teacher involvement in a research cruise. The project also involves international collaboration with the UK and is part of IPY Project #77: Plates&Gates, which aims to reconstruct the geologic history of polar ocean basins and gateways for computer simulations of climate change. See http://www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/plates_gates/ for more information.