Research Projects
Discovery Projects
The Initiation of Early Palaeozoic Subduction in Eastern Australia and North America: causes and effects
Total ARC funding: $180,000 (2007-2009)
Chief Investgators: Prof JD Foden; Dr BF Schaefer; Dr PG Betts; Dr MA Elburg; Prof GA Jenner; A/Prof CR Kincaid
Subduction is the return of cold, dense, oceanic lithosphere to the mantle and is one of the key dynamic elements of the plate tectonic paradigm. It is this process that is responsible for the 'Pacific Ring of Fire'. It is the root cause of many key geological processes and is a primary control of some of the earth's largest‑scale physiographic features, including deep‑sea trenches and mountain ranges. Using the important record of Cambrian in eastern Australia and in the comparable Canadian Atlantic margin, this project will look at the causes and impact of the earliest stages of subduction as it first developed in the western Pacific and pre‑cursor Atlantic 500 million years ago.
Linkage Projects
Developing a Tectonic Framework for the Gawler Craton: Paving the Way for Successful Mineral Exploration Programs
Total ARC funding: $576,000 (2004-2008)
Partner Organisation: Primary Industries and Resources South Australia
Chief Investigators: Dr MP Hand, Dr BF Schaefer, Dr GS Heinson, Dr PG Betts, Dr KM Barovich, Dr NG Direen
The late Archaean to Mesoproterozoic Gawler Craton is the major Precambrian province in southern Australia. However, despite containing one of the largest orebodies on Earth, exploration expenditure in the craton has been comparatively low, and hampered by insufficient knowledge of the craton's tectonic systems. This project uses an integrated package of geochemical, isotopic and geophysical tools to develop a comprehensive model for the tectonic evolution of the Gawler Craton. The project will constrain the development of the Gawler Craton in the context of Precambrian Australian evolution, and offer insights into universal processes of lithosphere formation, growth and stabilisation.
Deciphering the tectonic history of the Musgrave Block to assist mineral explorers and regional synthesis programs
Total ARC funding: $420,000 (2005-2008)
Partner Organisations: Primary Industries and Resources South Australia, Northern Territory Geological Survey.
Chief Investigators: Dr MP Hand; Dr GS Heinson; Dr BF Schaefer; Dr PG Betts; Dr KM Barovich; Dr NG Direen; Dr JD Foden
Effective mineral exploration strategies in complex basement terrains are increasingly reliant on integrated, data-rich, tectonic models. In this project we will focus a large multidisciplinary team to develop a tectonic model for the evolution of the Musgrave Block in central Australia. This large, poorly understood terrain occupies a critical structural location, separating the northern and southern Australian cratons. By constraining models of crustal evolution and architecture, the project will underpin future mineral exploration programs in this highly prospective greenfields region and define the role of the Musgrave Block in the assembly of Proterozoic Australia.
Unearthing the Marginal Terranes of the South Australian Craton: Keystone of Proterozoic
Total ARC funding: $430,000 (2008-2010)
Partner Organisation: Primary Industries and Resources South Australia
Chief Investigators: Dr PG Betts; Prof D Giles; Dr G Baines; Mr M Fairclough; Dr BF Schaefer
This project will investigate the buried geology of vast regions of northern South Australia that is likely to be compatible with rocks that host enormous mineral wealth including the giant Broken Hill and Olympic Dam deposits. We will access these buried rocks using a program of on‑shore scientific drilling that will provide the ground truth for multi‑million dollar federal and state government funded geophysical data acquisition. Results will help identify prospective mineral belts and determine the processes responsible for their formation.
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