This work will create a GIS-based repository of geological data sets from the Ford Ranges that will be made available via the Internet in both GIS and interactive web format. The proposed project will integrate the products of geological research with WorldView imagery and high resolution TMA photography available from the Antarctic Geospatial Information Center. The aims of the project are: 1) to develop an internet-based system for sharing of geological data, 2) associate these data with high resolution photography and imagery to extend analysis from areas of rock exposure to completely glaciated areas, and 3) to provide undergraduates with an exciting context in which to acquire fundamental skills and analytical experience in GIS together with an understanding of physical-chemical principles. The research will use GIS for inquiry and interpretation of a geological-glacial setting that has significance for climate, ice sheet, or tectonics in West Antarctica, augmented by in-depth study of published geological literature, through which students will learn to think critically, problem-solve, and experiment with methods and data sets in order to find solutions to contemporary scientific questions. This compilation of geological data and bedrock physical parameters is needed for the quantitative analysis of past paleotopography by ANTscape and Antarctic Climate Evolution scientists, and may be used as input data for continually more refined climate evolution and ice sheet models.
Broader impacts: As part of this work three undergraduates pursing senior theses will develop proficiency in GIS while exploring research questions about Antarctic climate evolution. This work will enable the scientific community to access an on-line repository of geological data from the Ford Ranges, West Antarctica that will be placed within the larger geospatial framework offered by satellite imagery. Interpretations of paleoelevations for selected regions and time intervals will be of broad use for climate/ice sheet modelers and glacial geologists. Petrological, geochronological, and structural data will be of value for solid earth scientists conducting work in segments of the former accretionary margin of Gondwana.
The primary aim of the project was to compile geological, geographic, geophysical and geodynamic data of West Antarctica upon a geospatial base of new high resolution satellite imagery, providing undergraduate students with a skills and a basis for earth science inquiry that would enable them to acquire Geographic Information Systems (GIS) proficiency. The education activities focused on western Marie Byrd Land where extensive exposures of rock provide 'ground truth,' and the grantee, C Siddoway, has direct knowledge based on previous field research. The students' work brought about the creation of a comprehensive GIS resource that consolidates historic and contemporary data within a unified frame. Over the three years of the grant, four of seven students gained valuable experience by fulfilling summer internships at the Polar Geospatial Center at University of Minnesota, and three others worked as summer researchers in the Keck Geospatial Commons at Colorado College. The GIS is being employed for 'virtual' geological exploration of West Antarctica, working from the "known" regions where there are rock exposures for 'ground truth,' into "unexplored" ice-covered regions. The GIS compilation and analysis was guided by P.I. Christine Siddoway and carried out by seven Colorado College undergraduates who researched the Cenozoic geology and landscape evolution (150 million years ago to Present) of sectors of West Antarctica as the subject for bachelors thesis research. The project had no field component; consequently the work was carried out at extremely low cost and with the possibility for participation by many. The achievements of the project were 1) training of undergraduates in the use of GIS and related geospatial software, through construction and development of a comprehensive GIS for a remote region of Antarctica, and 2) creation of an internet-accessible GIS database of field geological data acquired between 1989-2008 in Marie Byrd Land (MBL) in order to ensure that the scientific gains from prior NSF-funded research (1990-2009) are accessible in a contemporary format. 3) One student who has a specialization in studio art/printmaking undertook a series of artistic representations of volcano-ice interaction in the Marie Byrd Land volcanic province, as a means to bring science to the public in an accessible way. Her works were exhibited and she contributed to a public presentation in the 'science cafe' series offered at the 2012 conference of the Scientific Committee on Scientific Research in Portland, Oregon.
