REU Site (Collaborative Research): Before and After a Supereruption: Magmatic Insights from the Southern Black Mountains, AZ

超级大爆发--喷出超过1000立方公里火山物质的爆炸性事件--吸引了我们的想象力，迫使我们考虑地球上最罕见但最致命的行为之一的潜在影响。 了解过去导致超级爆发的原因对于理解和预测目前可能发生超级爆发活动的地方的类似事件至关重要，包括美国（例如黄石公园），南美洲，印度尼西亚和新西兰。该项目将调查亚利桑那州黑山南部1800万至1900万年前火山岩和侵入火成岩的典型暴露，那里的地质记录了桃泉凝灰岩超级喷发的岩浆演化，这是该项目的重点。参加REU的学生将解决对科学界和公众都很重要的问题：（1）超喷发岩浆活动与典型规模的岩浆活动（例如1980年的圣海伦斯火山）相比如何？(2)超级火山在爆发前是什么样子的？(3)侵入岩与火山岩在时空上的关系如何？(4)大型岩浆系统是如何以及为什么随着时间而变化的？ 它还将提供一个平台，用于测试和应用跟踪岩浆系统演变的综合实地和分析方法，包括光学和扫描电子显微镜、X射线荧光和激光烧蚀-电感耦合等离子体质谱法进行的岩石和矿物分析、地理信息系统和遥感，这些工具也可以结合起来解决其他岩浆中心的问题。除了推进对产生超级火山的岩浆系统的理解，这个项目将加强对未来超级爆发的理解和预测，为30名不同的本科生提供一个有价值的研究介绍，否则他们的机会可能会受到限制。它将有助于提高这一群体学生的科学素养、解决问题和沟通技能以及信心，从而加强他们的普通教育，并将吸引未来的地球科学家进入该领域，为他们开始研究生或职业生涯奠定坚实的基础，并与同行和教师建立持久的大学关系。 该项目将促进新的和持续的合作，涉及参与的学生，领导者和其他学术机构的研究人员。它还将为两名早期职业教师（一名女性）和一名优秀的女博士生提供宝贵的指导经验，他们都在追求强调指导本科研究人员的职业生涯。

Supereruptions - explosive events that eject more than 1000 cubic kilometers of volcanic material - capture our imagination and compel us to consider the potential effects of one of Earth's rarest yet deadliest acts. Comprehending what led to supereruptions in the past is essential to understanding and predicting similar events in places where supereruptive activity is currently possible, including the U.S. (e.g. Yellowstone), South America, Indonesia, and New Zealand. This project will investigate an exemplary exposure of 18- to 19-million-year-old volcanic and intrusive igneous rocks in the southern Black Mountains of Arizona, where the geologic record documents magmatic evolution of the Peach Spring Tuff supereruption, which is the focus of this project. Students participating in the REU will address questions that are important to both the scientific community and the public: (1) How does supereruptive magmatism compare to typical-scale magmatism (e.g. Mount St. Helens in 1980), and how are these connected? (2) What does a supervolcano look like before it erupts? (3) What are the relationships between intrusive rocks and spatially and temporally associated volcanics? (4) How and why do large magmatic systems change through time? It will also provide a platform for testing and applying integrated field and analytical methods for tracking evolution of magma systems, including optical and scanning electron microscopy, rock and mineral analysis by X-ray fluorescence and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, GIS, and remote sensing, tools that can also be combined to address questions at other magmatic centers.In addition to advancing the understanding of the magmatic systems that produce supervolcanoes and thereby enhancing comprehension and forecasting of future supereruptions, this project will provide a valuable introduction to research for 30 diverse undergraduates whose opportunities may be otherwise limited. It will contribute to the scientific literacy, problem solving and communication skills and the confidence of this group of students, thereby enhancing their general education, and it will attract future earth scientists to the field, providing them with a sound foundation to begin a graduate or professional career and enduring collegial relationships with peers and faculty. This project will foster new and continuing collaborations involving participating students, leaders, and researchers at other academic institutions. It will also provide valuable mentoring experience for two early-career faculty (one female) and one outstanding female PhD student, all of whom are pursuing careers emphasizing mentoring undergraduate researchers.