REU: Geologic and Geophysical Study of Mesozoic Guyots

该奖项将支持马萨诸塞州的麦克纳特博士 技术研究所参加了一项研究， 形态学、沉积历史和地球化学， 位于日本海沟和夏威夷群岛之间。这 太平洋地区被认为是独一无二的， 以众多海山为特征 珊瑚链、环礁和盖奥特群， 白垩纪广泛的火山活动。收集数据 在托马斯华盛顿号上的一次实地考察中， 反射地震剖面、重力和磁力 个别盖奥特以及这些特征的取样。这些 数据将被用来检查的年龄序列的问题， 火山作用，白垩纪太平洋板块运动，岩石圈 挠曲和弹性/热厚度、地球化学亲合性 火山岩的地幔源，海山古纬度， 盖奥特礁帽的厚度和内部地层，以及 珊瑚礁溺水的时间和原因。这些数据将用于 检验这个古老的西北端 白垩纪形成海山链“达尔文带” 当时的地幔和薄而热的岩石圈 位于活动带的东南部 这是一个合作项目， 斯克里普斯研究所，德克萨斯农工大学和马萨诸塞州 理工学院该项目的数据将非常重要 未来在这一地区的海洋钻探计划。

This award will support Dr. McNutt of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to participate in a study of the morphology, sediment history and geochemistry of guyots which are located between the Japan Trench and the Hawaiian Islands. This area of the Pacific Ocean is known to be unique and is characterized by numerous seamount chains, atolls and guyot groups which began forming during a Cretaceous period of extensive volcanism. Data to be collected during a field program aboard the Thomas Washington include reflection seismic profiles, gravity and magnetics across individual guyots as well as sampling of these features. These data will be used to examine questions on the age sequences of volcanism, Cretaceous Pacific Plate motions, lithosphere flexuring and elastic/thermal thickness, geochemical affinities and mantle sources of volcanics, seamount paleolatitudes, thickness and internal stratigraphy of guyot reef caps, and the timing and causes of reef drowning. These data will be used to examine the hypothesis that the older northwest end of this "Darwin Belt" of seamount chains was underlain in Cretaceous times by the type of mantle and thin, hot lithosphere that now underlies the active, southeast part of the belt. This is a cooperative project involving scientist at Scripps Institution, Texas A & M University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Data from this project will be important in planning future ocean drilling in this region.