Based on the successful results of the 1988 PASSCAL pilot seismic investigation in the Brooks Range, Arctic Alaska, this research is to continue the seismic investigations in the central Brooks Range in cooperation with the USGS and other universities. PASSCAL instruments will be used. The wide range of investigation, from lithosphere to kilometer scale, will strongly enhance the value of the findings, particularly in resolving one of the major structural controversies of the Brooks Range, the nature of the Doonerak window. This area has been studied extensively on the surface, and it is obvious that sub-surface data is necessary to correctly interpret the structure. The tieing of surface and sub-surface geology is the key to understanding orogenic belts worldwide, hence the results of this project could have a significant impact on many other studies in similar tectonic settings.
