Petrology and tectonics of the Cordillera

位于南北美洲西部边缘的山脉带，通常被称为科迪勒拉山脉，是由地球作用形成的，可以追溯到前寒武纪（超过5.5亿年），一直持续到今天。在现代环境中，这些过程表现为地震、火山和当前的地质特征模式。那些发生在古代的事件被记录在更古老的岩层中，这些岩层可以在野外和实验室中进行检查，以解释事件的性质、年龄和顺序。这一建议旨在了解科迪勒拉地质的两个方面，其中一个涉及现代和地质近代，另一个涉及更古老的前寒武纪。对现代过程的研究将检查位于太平洋下方的两个构造板块相互分离的位置的岩石、其他地质特征和地球物理特征，其中一个或两个构造板块正在将组成美洲的板块俯冲（被拉到下面）。所涉及的过程被称为脊俯冲，目前正在四个地方发生，包括加拿大西部的地下。研究在这些地方形成的地震、火山和其他特征将阐明脊俯冲的机制和结果。对前寒武纪岩石的研究将在育空地区和不列颠哥伦比亚北部的地层中进行。其目标是破译古代地质环境，确定前寒武纪大陆最可能的形态。前寒武纪和现代的研究都涉及岩石学（研究岩石及其特征和成分）和构造学（研究地球结构和运动）。在这些研究中使用的方法包括地质填图、岩石和矿物检查、地球化学成分和同位素年龄的测定以及地理信息系统技术。

The mountain belt located along the western edge of North and South America, commonly referred to as the Cordillera, was formed by Earth processes dating back to the Precambrian (older than 550 million years) and continuing to the present day. In the modern environment, these processes are manifested by earthquakes, volcanoes, and the current pattern of geological features. Those that occurred in ancient times are recorded by older rock formations that can be examined in the field and laboratory to interpret the nature, age and sequence of events. This proposal seeks to understand two aspects of Cordilleran geology, one of which refers to modern and geologically recent times, and the other to more ancient times in the Precambrian. The study of modern processes will examine rocks, other geological features, and geophysical characteristics at locations where two tectonic plates located beneath the Pacific ocean are moving apart from one another, and one or both of them is subducting (being pulled beneath) the plates that make up the Americas. The process involved, termed ridge subduction, is occurring at four localities at the present time, including beneath western Canada. Studying the earthquakes, volcanoes and other features that form in these locations will clarify the mechanisms and outcomes of ridge subduction. The study of Precambrian rocks will be carried out on formations in the Yukon and northern British Columbia. The goal is to decipher the ancient geological environment and determine the most likely configuration of the continents the Precambrian. Both the Precambrian and modern investigations involve petrology (the study of rocks, their features and their compositions) and tectonics (the study of Earth structures and movements). The methods to be used in these studies include geological mapping, rock and mineral examination, determination of geochemical compositions and isotopic ages, plus geographical information system (GIS) technology.