Acquisition of a Research Boat with Which to Conduct Geologic Studies of the Alexander-Stikine Suture Zone, Southeastern Alaska

阿拉斯加东南部Alexander-Stikine缝合带的岩石包括北美板块西海岸形成的本地衍生地质地体和由于太平洋板块运动而在地质时间内长途迁移的外来地体之间的边界。该项目的首席研究员将在该地区进行实地研究，重点关注全球构造过程，通过这些构造过程，这些遥远的地块被转移并最终在北美西部边缘结合在一起。这项建议要求提供所需资金的50%，用于购买一艘小型研究船，以便在这个否则无法进入的地区进行实地运输。美国国家科学基金会资助的阿拉斯加东南部亚历山大-斯提金缝合带岩石地质历史研究将为板块构造变化期间大陆的生长提供新的和具体的解释。

The rocks of the Alexander-Stikine suture zone in southeastern Alaska include the boundary between locally derived geological terranes formed on the west coast of the North American plate and the exotic terranes which have, over geological time, migrated long distances due to the movement of the Pacific plate. Field studies in this zone by the principal investigator of this project will be focused on the global tectonic processes through which these distant terranes were displaced and finally joined on the western margin of North America. This proposal requests 50% of the funds required to purchase a small research boat for field transportation in this otherwise inaccessible region. The NSF-sponsored research in the geological history of the rocks of the Alexander-Stikine suture zone of southeastern Alaska will provide new and specific interpretations of the growth of continents during plate tectonic changes.