This study will conduct paleomagnetic analyses of equatorial Pacific sediment cores spanning the Eocene through the Pleistocene collected during IODP expeditions 320 and 321. Using high resolution U-channel measurements, this project will produce a high resolution magnetostratigraphic record that could serve as a very important chronostratigraphic tool. The project will address five objectives: 1) refine the shipboard magnetostratigraphies, 2) generate continuous geomagnetic intensity and directional paleosecular variation records, 3) generate environmental magnetic records, 4) improve the Cenezoic geologic timescale, and 5) improve our understanding of the Pacific apparent polar wander.
Broader impacts: The project would support undergraduate and/or graduate students at the universities of all four PIs. The project also effectively capitalizes on a large investment previously made in an IODP expedition and further enhances the collaborations and exchange of information between several international members of the expedition and the IODP community. By developing such an important chronological tool that helps refine the geologic timescale and improves the geomagnetic intensity record, the project significantly impacts the earth sciences.
