URSP Student Carlin Green Conducts 3-D Strain Analysis in the Blue Ridge Anticlinorium
My
research project is centered on determining three-dimensional strain geometry
in the Antietam formation, a sandstone unit exposed on the East and West limbs
of the Blue Ridge Anticlinorium. This is
an area in which many of our field trips take place in the Geology department,
and where I grew up, so it was natural for me to take an interest in the
area. It was my desire to complete
undergraduate research in order to bolster my prospects for graduate school and
to gain experience doing field work and lab research. There have been many stages in the
development of this project. My mentor,
John Singleton, and I made several trips to the field to collect rock samples
which we then cut and shipped across the country to be made into thin sections
suitable for study under a petrographic microscope. From there I spent a large portion of time
collecting data from thousands of deformed quartz grains in order to
characterize what is known as the Strain Ellipse, the geometry of which allows
us to understand the deformational history in this area. In a few weeks, we will travel to Washington
& Lee University to perform Electron Backscatter Diffraction analysis on
several samples, which will yield more information about the geometry and
orientation of crystallographic axes.
One thing I discovered this week is that in one particular area, which
we intend to map, you can walk from a low-strain to a high-strain environment
in a very short distance. Although it is
not yet clear, these strain ratios may exceed recorded strain data for this
area. This is quite interesting and
requires close examination.
My
research project is centered on determining three-dimensional strain geometry
in the Antietam formation, a sandstone unit exposed on the East and West limbs
of the Blue Ridge Anticlinorium. This is
an area in which many of our field trips take place in the Geology department,
and where I grew up, so it was natural for me to take an interest in the
area. It was my desire to complete
undergraduate research in order to bolster my prospects for graduate school and
to gain experience doing field work and lab research. There have been many stages in the
development of this project. My mentor,
John Singleton, and I made several trips to the field to collect rock samples
which we then cut and shipped across the country to be made into thin sections
suitable for study under a petrographic microscope. From there I spent a large portion of time
collecting data from thousands of deformed quartz grains in order to
characterize what is known as the Strain Ellipse, the geometry of which allows
us to understand the deformational history in this area. In a few weeks, we will travel to Washington
& Lee University to perform Electron Backscatter Diffraction analysis on
several samples, which will yield more information about the geometry and
orientation of crystallographic axes.
One thing I discovered this week is that in one particular area, which
we intend to map, you can walk from a low-strain to a high-strain environment
in a very short distance. Although it is
not yet clear, these strain ratios may exceed recorded strain data for this
area. This is quite interesting and
requires close examination.
