REU Site: Collaborative Research: Field-Based Research on the Gulf of California Rift Margin Basins, Baja California Sur (Mexico)

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The goal of this Baja Basins Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) project is: (1) for student participants to develop skills in conducting and communicating scientific research, (2) to employ an integrative field and lab research approach, using digital technology and modern analytical lab equipment, and (3) to learn international cooperation by collaborating side-by-side with Mexican students, professors, and mining professionals to address research questions on the tectonic evolution of the economically important Santa Rosalía rift margin basin in Baja California Sur, México. Few places in the world expose volcanic and marine sedimentary sequences and large uplifted Quaternary terraces that can be used to understand the processes involved in the progressive stages of continental breakup, including magmatic activity and economic mineralization. The geologic youthfulness of the Santa Rosalía basin along this segment of the Gulf of California, as well as excellent exposures make it ideal for resolving the rates of development of structures and resulting depositional systems. Participants will spend three weeks in México conducting field research during the winter intersession to take advantage of cooler weather. This will allow time for sample preparation to be done before the four-week summer laboratory analysis session is conducted, on the campus of the University of Missouri-­Kansas City. This REU site will recruit junior undergraduate geoscience majors with an emphasis on Hispanic, bilingual, veteran, and women students. The collaboration with Mexican scientists, mining professionals, and the international nature of the fieldwork will provide an unparalleled avenue for cultural enrichment for the students as well as an experience in global cooperation between academia and industry that will be invaluable for a student's future success in an increasingly global workforce and economy.This award is being co-funded with the Office International and Integrative Activities.