This award is for one year of additional funding to complete a MARGINS Source-to-Sink investigation of the subaqueous clinoform in the Gulf of Papua (GoP). Due to fortunate circumstances they acquired more than 6800 km of high-resolution seismic data (2300 km of surface-towed Edgetech and 4500 km of hull-mounted Knudsen) and 46 piston and gravity cores for a total cumulative core length of 432 m. This third year of funding will be used to complete the analysis of the data, numerical modeling, and synthesis. Additional radiometric ages, seismic mapping of specific lenses, numerical modeling of ocean circulation at a lower sea level, and identification of sediment sources through geochemical and petrographic analysis will allow the PIs to test the hypotheses developed during the first two years of funding. The broader impacts include the participation of graduate students and the outreach activities carried out in Papua New Guinea and the Scripps Aquarium.
