This award supports Dr. J.E.T. Channell and a graduate student from the University of Florida to collaborate in geological research with Dr. Rainer Brandner of the Institute for Geology and Paleontology at the University of Innsbruck. They are attempting to reconstruct the paleogeography of the Northern and Southern Calcareous Alps using a variety of geochemical and stratigraphic techniques. Dr. Brandner has primary responsibility for the sedimentary facies analysis to delineate the basinal, swell and shallow water depositional settings. Dr. Channell will carry out the paleomagnetic work to determine the paleorientation of these facies boundaries. The proposed field work will concentrate on paleomagnetic and sedimentological studies of the Northern Calcareous Alps and the Drauzug Range of Austria. The results will be combined with previous studies of the Central Australpine Complex and the Southern Alps to produce insights into the paleogeographic relationship between these areas and ultimately improve our understanding of the origin of the Alpine region.
