This project will host a MARGINS workshop in April 2009 in Charleston, SC. The main purpose of the workshop is to 1) integrate the research results from studies from the Rupturing Continental Lithosphere (RCL) initiative of MARGINS, primarily from studies conducted in the Dead Sea and the Gulf of California, and 2) to plan future lithospheric extension initiatives. Comparing of results from these two near-endmember focus sites will help develop new perspectives on rupture processes. Discussions among researchers mediated by this workshop will provide a healthy venue for intellectual exchange and thus better assure that the goals of the RCL initiative are achieved.
Broader Impacts: The workshop will involve an international community of researchers from academia and industry who are recognized experts of the Gulf of California rift system. The workshop will facilitate cross exchange and dialogue amongst these participants, which will be vital for planning future research efforts and analyses. The workshop conveners will compile a progress report that summarizes the accomplishments of the RCL program.
