Projects of iMAGE-CREATE Members:
Superior Province crustal growth (Dan Stepner, PhD uOttawa) – crustal growth and recycling in the Archean, using a combination of U-Pb-Hf in zircons, major and trace element analyses, along with long- and short-lived isotopic studies.
Solomon Islands subduction zones magmatic-hydrothermal systems (David Summer, MSc Toronto) – lithotectonic mapping of the seafloor around the Solomon Islands using bathymetric and geophysical data and the geology of associated seafloor massive sulfide deposits.
Thermochronology of the Alpine orogeny (Jennifer Spalding, PhD uOttawa) – use of apatite fission track data to derive thermal histories of crustal processes related to the timing of metallic ore and hydrocarbon deposition.
Back-arc basin sequence stratigraphy (Jessie Kehew, MSc uOttawa) – history of sedimentation during the opening of the Lau Basin using high-resolution acoustic imaging with comparison to inter-assemblage sedimentary basins of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt.
Magmatic-hydrothermal systems of the Jean Charcot Troughs (Jonathan Umbsaar, MSc Toronto) – geochemical characterization and trace metal behaviour in sulphide deposits of the Jean-Charcot Troughs and comparisons with other SW Pacific sites.
Magmatic-hydrothermal systems of the Niua Volcanic Complex, Tofua Arc (Kallie Stone, BSc Memorial) – depositional processes and efficiencies of metals in the Niua South hydrothermal system using MATLAB code to derive metal fluxes.
North Fiji Basin tectonic fabrics (Katherine Power, BSc uOttawa) – automated analysis of microplate spreading fabrics during the opening of the North Fiji Basin based on bathymetry, magnetics, and gravity (supported by SEG Undergraduate Research Award)
Queen Charlotte Fault (Maochuan Zhang, PhD Dalhousie) – using active- and passive-source seismic data to characterize crustal and upper mantle velocity structure, fault zone architecture and pathways, and rheology of the Queen Charlotte Fault off British Columbia and Alaska.
Lau Basin magmatic productivity (Michael Ryan, MSc uOttawa) – mapping and analysis of four crustal assemblages of the Lau and North Fiji basins to determine variability and controls on large-scale magmatic productivity.
Mariana back-arc geodynamics and hydrothermal systems (Octavio Acuña Avendaño, PhD Toronto) – lithospheric controls on magmatic-hydrothermal systems in the Mariana back-arc, including the temporal evolution and geochemical characteristics at regional scales.
North Fiji Basin crustal-scale geodynamics (Rebecca Mensing, PhD uOttawa) – crustal accretion processes and evolution of the North Fiji Basin at 1:1 million scale, based on marine geophysical data integrated with geological sampling.
Great Basin extension and magmatism (Sabrina Chan, MSc Carleton) – using major/trace elements and isotopes to study Eocene igneous activity in the Great Basin ignimbrite province and better define the Phanerozoic and Precambrian basement boundaries.
Fluid-rock interactions in submarine magmatic-hydrothermal systems (Sarah Moriarty, PhD Memorial) – using stable isotopes to constrain fluid/rock interactions in the IODP Brothers Volcano drill site, sediment-covered and sediment-free mid-ocean ridges, and ultramafic settings.
Remote-predictive mapping of the Reykjanes Ridge (Sofia Panasiuk, BSc Toronto) – application of novel techniques for geological mapping of structures on the tectonically active submarine Reykjanes Ridge, and links to hotspot influences at local and regional scale.
Tectonic structure of the Haida Gwaii region, British Columbia
(Taylor Tracey Kyryliuk, MSc uOttawa) − investigating the connection between the offshore adjacent triple junction and a 2012 earthquake that using a newly deployed array of submarine and terrestrial seismic stations.
Crustal growth of the Brazilian craton (Victor Garcia, PhD uOttawa) − studying the formation of the oldest crust in south America using whole-rock and trace element geochemistry and especially long- and short-lived Sm-Nd isotopes.
Luzon Volcanic Arc, Philippines (William Midea, MSc uOttawa) − documentation of the magmatic evolution of the super-endowed Luzon arc porphyry Cu-Au belt, through compositional variation of zircon, amphibole and Fe-Ti oxides, including thermobarometry to identify fertile intrusions.
Litho-and chronostratigraphic sections of modern arc-backarc terranes (Tatiana Sitnikova, PhD uOttawa) − developing type sections for modern arc-backarc systems (Izu-Bonin-Mariana), including recognition of major unconformities as a guide to interpretation of greenstone belt assemblages.
Trace-element fingerprinting of submarine magmatic-hydrothermal systems (Jacob Tidwell, MSc uOttawa) − using regional trace metal fingerprints of submarine magmatic hydrothermal systems to assess crustal contributions and regional mineral potential, comparing modern and ancient analogs.
Tectonics of the Mexican subduction zone (Marie-Pierre Nantel, MSc Carleton) – using physical properties of the earthquake source to compare and contrast earthquakes and analyze the tectonics and seismic hazards of the Mexican subduction zone.
Application of machine learning to interpretation of seismology (Hao Mai, PhD uOttawa) − improving detection and location of earthquakes using machine learning, with application to land and marine data sets.