COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: St. Elias Erosion and Tectonics Project (STEEP)

该项目为圣埃利亚斯侵蚀-构造项目(START)的两年续展提供资金。陡峭是一项对阿拉斯加南部圣埃利亚斯造山带进行的9个机构的多学科研究，研究人员从露头到岩石圈尺度对该系统进行了研究。到目前为止，START已经发表了17篇论文，另有9篇已提交或即将提交，赞助了71篇摘要，到2010年春季将录取5名硕士和4名博士生，并从根本上改变了我们对阿拉斯加构造以及构造与气候在造山过程中相互作用的理解。续订资金将用于：1)最后处理和解释一些直到项目第5年才获得的关键数据集，包括海洋地震勘测(船舶延误)和重新占用全球定位系统关键地点(2008年的天气问题)；以及2)由于这些延误，直到现在才可能实现的成果的完全整合。这些极好的数据集的完全整合和综合有可能改变我们对地壳结构和构造力如何与冰川侵蚀和沉积运输的地球表面过程相互作用以形成山脉和巨大大陆架的理解。

This project provides funds for a two-year renewal of the St. Elias Erosion-tectonics Project (STEEP). STEEP is a 9 institution, multidisciplinary study of the St. Elias orogen in southern Alaska that involves researchers examining the system from the outcrop to lithosphere scale. To date, STEEP has produced 17 papers with another 9 submitted or nearing submission, sponsored 71 abstracts, will have matriculated 5 masters and 4 Doctoral students by Spring 2010, and fundamentally changed our understanding of Alaskan tectonics and the interaction of tectonics and climate in mountain building. The renewal funds will be used for: 1) final processing and interpretation of some key datasets that were not acquired until year 5 of the project including the marine seismic survey (ship delays) and reoccupation of key GPS sites (weather problems in 2008); and 2) a complete integration of results which was not possible until now due to these delays. A complete integration and synthesis of these superb datasets has the potential to be transformative in our understanding of how crustal structure and tectonic forces interact with Earth surface processes of glacial erosion and sedimentary transport to grow a mountain range and a massive continental shelf.