Two pre-AGU GeoPRISMS Mini-Workshops – plan your travel now!

For all GeoPRISMS researchers interested in subduction zone studies – see below for information about upcoming pre-AGU Mini-Workshops, scheduled for Sunday, December 8, 2013.  Please mark your calendars today, and plan your AGU travel accordingly!

If you are interested in field work opportunities in either or both

  (1) Kermadec Arc-Havre Trough

  (2) the Aleutian Arc and Alaska

consider attending the following mini-workshops before the 2013 Fall AGU Meeting. Both mini-workshops will be held in conjunction with the AGU special session “Tectonics and magmatism in the Alaska-Aleutian, Cascadia and Taupo-Tonga subduction systems”.

Further details about registration and mini-workshop programs will be coming soon.  Keep an eye on:

http://www.geoprisms.nineplanetsllc.com/mini-workshops.html

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(1) Kermadec Arc-Havre Trough Planning Mini-workshop

Sunday, December 8, 2013, 8-12 pm, Grand Hyatt, Fillmore ABC

The Kermadec Arc and Havre Trough (KAHT) intraoceanic arc – back-arc system (extending north from the Taupo Volcanic Zone of New Zealand to the Tonga-Lau subduction system) has become the focus of international interest as part of the New Zealand GeoPRISMS primary site.  Initial discussions during the GeoPRISMS New Zealand planning meeting, held in April 2013 in Wellington, concurred that maximum benefit from research over the KAHT system would come from advance coordination, particularly in the area of choosing specific regions for detailed study and integrating results to maximize the synergy between different expeditions and research programs.

Pelase join these initial coordination discussions at a Pre-AGU Meeting mini-workshop on Sunday morning.

– Share recent research results and available datasets from the KAHT system

– Identify remaining data gaps in the area

– Share information of upcoming/planned and proposed cruise proposals and research programs.

– Further refine the key research questions that can be addressed within the KAHT system and how GeoPRISMS can best address these issues within the framework of recent and proposed studies, particularly with respect to collaborations with international groups

– Coordinate areas of investigation to maximize studies in specific geographic regions, in accord with the key science questions (see above) and the upcoming and planned cruises by various groups.

– Foster cooperation and coordination in KAHT research within GeoPRISMS and with other international research groups working in the area.

(2) Workshop on Field Logistics for GeoPRISMS Research in the Aleutian Arc

Sunday, December 8, 2013, 1-6 pm, Grand Hyatt, Fillmore ABC

An NSF-supported Workshop on Aleutian Field Logistics, on Sunday, December 8, before the Fall AGU Meeting in San Francisco, will address coordination of logistical resources for field work in the oceanic Aleutian arc and along the Alaska Peninsula.

We will assess the level of available resources and community interest in proposed, shared field support for GeoPRISMS supported research jn the Aleutian arc. In one important option, NSF is considering chartering a ship and an associated helicopter, which would leave Anchorage for the western Aleutians, in a 40 to 60 day round trip, in the summers of 2015 and 2016. NSF-supported investigators would board and disembark as needed, in ports such as Cold Bay, Dutch Harbor, Adak Island, and perhaps other ports, and would use the ship and helicopter to access field sites along the Aleutians.

We will also consider the potential contributions and needs from IRIS for the transportable array deployment in Alaska, from the Alaska Volcano Observatory for their ongoing volcano monitoring efforts, from NOAA Ocean Exploration, and other interested organizations whose goals include potential synergy with GeoPRISMS research in the oceanic Aleutian arc and the Alaska Peninsula.

The motivation for these plans is to reduce the logistical cost per project for field research in the Aleutians, as part of the GeoPRISMS Alaska Focus Area, while maximizing the number of field projects that can be supported. In particular, we hope that – by minimizing cost and streamlining logistical planning – an NSF-supported, shared ship and helicopter will provide access to investigators who otherwise might not participate in Aleutian research, in order to ensure the maximum scientific return on this unprecedented opportunity to study a uniquely important part of the global subduction system.

Central goals of the workshop will include:

(1) Assessing the level of community interest in one or more shared logistical platforms. Specifically, how many potential PI’s will submit proposals to GeoPRISMS for field work in the Aleutian arc? Will there be enough participation to justify NSF support for shared logistics? Alternatively, will there be “too much” interest, necessitating a mechanism for prioritizing potential users, and/or deployment of supplementary, alternative logistical platforms?

(2) Assessing the logistical requirements. How many likely projects will require helicopter access? What will be the payloads? For example, for broadband seismometer installation, how many kg of cement, etc, will be needed? What will be the flying times, and associated fuel consumption? How many projects will require multi-day stays on islands or other remote locations? How will drop off and pickup be coordinated? Will other vessels be required? Will other vessels be available when needed? Is dredging an option? Is deployment of ocean bottom seismometers an option?

(3) Seeking partnerships with other groups who might be able to contribute resources to support a shared facility, and/or who might be interested in using such a facility. If potential GeoPRISMS use is not overwhelming, would other groups (IRIS, Alaska Volcano Observatory, NOAA, biological oceanographers, Š) be interested in co-sponsoring a shared ship and helicopter? If IRIS, Alaska Volcano Observatory and/or NOAA plan to support other logistical platforms in the region, to what extent might they be willing to share use of these platforms for GeoPRISMS projects? Could NSF provide partial support of these other platforms?

(4) Discussing different funding options with NSF personnel. Will NSF support the ship and some helicopter related costs separately from individual project budgets, as is done for ship costs in marine geology and geophysics projects? What proportion of costs – for example hourly helicopter charges and associated fuel costs – should appear in individual project budgets?

We anticipate several outcomes from this workshop.

IF the December workshop is deemed a success by NSF, then an NSF supported, shared ship and helicopter would be available for Aleutians field work in the summers of 2015 and 2016. In addition, we can anticipate broad interest from other agencies in sharing resources in the 2015 and 2016 field seasons. The workshop will establish structures for coordinating these interests, working out the details of scheduling, funding and necessary infrastructure.

The NSF GeoPRISMS Program has previously announced a window of opportunity for proposals in the Alaska Primary Site in July 2013 (FY 2014) and 2014 (FY 2015). NSF GeoPRISMS Program Directors have assured us that proposals for Aleutian field work, submitted in 2014 but not accepted, may be revised and resubmitted in July 2015. Proposals for field work in the Aleutians will still be accepted this year for field work in summer 2014. It is up to individual PI’s to decide whether to wait and see if the shared field platform is funded for 2015-16 before submitting a proposal. However, remember that until a shared platform has been funded, every proposal will be reviewed as though each project will shoulder the full logistical burden of field work, even for 2015 and 2016 field work.

In the near future, similar announcements will include links to a site where participants in the December workshop can register.

The choice of venue was made to reduce travel costs for participants already planning to attend the Fall AGU Meeting. There will be no registration fee. NSF plans to subsidize the cost of meeting facilities and refreshments for the workshop, but not travel. There will be a limited number of participants. Ideally, the maximum number will be attained, but not exceeded. Thus, PLEASE REGISTER EARLY, AND HELP US SPREAD THE WORD to as many potential participants as possible.

Please feel free to direct questions about the Workshop to me or other members of the organizing committee. Please direct questions about proposals for Aleutian field work to NSF GeoPRISMS Program Directors Bilal Haq <bhaq@nsf.gov>, and Jennifer Wade <jwade@nsf.gov>, and Jim Beard <jbeard@nsf.gov>.

Best wishes,

Peter Kelemen <peterk@ldeo.columbia.edu>

on behalf of the coordinating committee for the
Workshop on Shared Support for Aleutian Field Work:

Peter van Keken, incoming GeoPRISMS Chair <keken@umich.edu>

Julia Morgan, GeoPRISMS Chair <morganj@rice.edu>

Geoff Abers, past MARGINS Chair <abers@ldeo.columbia.edu>

Jeff Freymueller <jeff.freymueller@gi.alaska.edu>

Peter Haeussler <pheuslr@usgs.gov>

Steve Holbrook <steveh@uwyo.edu>

Brian Jicha <bjicha@geology.wisc.edu>

Peter Kelemen <peterk@ldeo.columbia.edu>

John Power <jpower@usgs.gov>

Gene Yogodzinski <gyogodzin@geol.sc.edu>

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One example of the kind of ship NSF could charter is the Maritime Maid. Information on this vessel is available at http://www.maritimehelicopters.com/. Other, larger platforms may be available, for example through the State of Alaska, the Coast Guard or NOAA.

One example of a ship that could provide additional support, for example pickup of field parties, is the Tiglax. This ship is often used for short term deployments or pickups of geological field parties. Information is available at http://alaskamaritime.fws.gov/tiglax.htm.