GEMOC ARC National Key Centre

• The nature of lithosphere extension in the Taiwan region and implications for geodynamics in eastern China, with Professor S-L Chung, National University of Taiwan.  Fieldwork in the Penghu Islands (see photo) was undertaken in May 2002 with participants from the national University of Taiwan relevant to the research project of Dr Kuo-Lung Wang (Macquarie University Research Fellow).

• Analysis of off-craton lithospheric mantle in East Central Asia Orogenic Belt, with Dr V. Malkovets, Novosibirsk

• TerraneChron^TM analysis of the Amazon Craton, with WMC Resources

• Canary Islands lithosphere and volcanism with Prof. E.-R. Neumann (Oslo)

• Tectonic domains in southern Norway (using TerraneChronTM), with Prof. T. Andersen (University Oslo) and Dr B. Bingen (Norwegian Geological Survey)

• Collaborative agreements negotiated with Drs Karsten Gohl and Kaj Hoernle (Alfred Wegener Institute, Bremerhaven) to participate in planned RV Sonne cruises to investigate the nature of the Campbell Plateau, Southern Ocean

• Characteristics of the lithospheric mantle wedge in the Japan, Kurile-Kamchatka and Luzon-Taiwan subduction zones

• Collaboration continued with Professors A. Giret and J.-Y. Cottin of the University of Jean Monnet, St Etienne (with reciprocal funding from both sides).  A formal agreement between the two universities includes PhD exchange, academic exchange and research collaboration relevant to the nature of the lithosphere in the Kerguelen Archipelago, Crozet Islands and Hoggar.  Three PhD programs related to this project are ongoing with Guillaume Delpech (funded by an International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (IPRS), a GEMOC stipend and a French government Co-tutelle Scholarship), Raynald Ethien (funded by a Co-tutelle Scholarship) Dr M. Grégoire (University of Cape Town then CNRS,Toulouse from September) and Dr Bertrand Moine (the University of St Etienne).

A great day’s work finished in the Massif Central (September 2002).

• Lithosphere studies in the Massif Central of France commenced in collaboration with the Universities of St Etienne and Clermont-Ferrand.  The postgraduate program of Stephanie Touron (funded by an IPRS, a RAACE award and a Co-tutelle Scholarship) addresses this topic.  Professor Gilles Chazot, her co-supervisor from Clermont-Ferrand, visited GEMOC for several months in 2002.  Sue O’Reilly and Bill Griffin joined Stephanie Touron, her two co-supervisors in France and Eloise

• Beyer (recently completed PhD student in GEMOC) for fieldwork in the Massif Central (see photo) for her PhD project.

• Sulfides and the PGE budget in the mantle beneath the Massif Central with Prof. J.-L. Bodinier (Université Montpellier) and Prof. J.-P. Lorand (National Natural History Museum, Paris)

• Composition and crystal chemistry of mantle amphiboles with Dr M. Tiepolo, Dr R. Vance and Prof. R. Oberti from the University of Pavia, Italy

• In situ Sr isotope analysis of marine fossils to constrain stratigraphic/tectonic reconstruction of terranes in New Zealand, with Dr C. Adams (Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, New Zealand)

• Interpretation of the lithosphere structure of the Global Geoscience Transect 21 with Professor Yuan Xuecheng of the China Geological Survey

• Igneous rocks, mineral deposits and tectonic setting: southeastern China and eastern Australia.  This collaboration with Nanjing University has expanded from an AusAID grant under the ACILP scheme.
  

• Lithosphere Mapping, southeastern China (with Professor Xu Xisheng, Nanjing University, funded by the Chinese National Science Foundation)
  Lithosphere studies in China (with Professor Jianping Zheng).  This follows on from a project with a consortium of participating institutions in a 5-year National Priority Program funded by China NSF from 1997, led in China by Prof. Zhou Xinhua of the Geological Institute, Academy of Sciences, Beijing.  Results and material from GEMOC’s previous International Links Project played a key role in the success of this project funding in China.  This collaboration led to a field trip in May 2002 to the famous northern China mantle xenolith locality of Hannuoba (see photo), a region inaccessible to non-nationals before this time.

• Lithosphere structure of North America (with Kennecott Canada)  

• Inclusions in diamonds from Canadian lithosphere (with Kennecott Canada Exploration Inc.) .    Collaboration continued with Dr Scott E. Johnson at the University of Maine, funded by an NSF grant to Johnson, with Vernon as collaborator, working on the San José pluton, Baja California, México, and with Dr Scott R. Paterson at the University of Southern California, working on metamorphic-deformation problems in the Cascade Range, Washington.  This project is being funded by an NSF grant to Vernon at USC, which also supports an MS student (Luke Jensen). Refer to the Research Program and Postgraduate sections of this Report for details of other projects.

GEMOC participants also have a wide range of other research collaborations with colleagues in UK, USA, Europe (France, Germany, Norway, Italy) as described in the section on Research Programs and in Appendix 5.

On the mantle trail in our Blue Tractor at Hannuoba, northern China: Ming Zhang and Jianping Zheng in the tray, Sue O’Reilly in padded comfort