Constraining landform response to tectonic and climate changes in an active orogen: a multi-disciplinary approach. The aim of this project is to quantify the efficiency of coupling between tectonics, climate and erosion in an active mountain belt, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, by combining world-class expertise in a range of fields, including the collection and analysis of thermochronological data, the analysis of digital elevation maps, morphometric field measurements, and the development a ....Constraining landform response to tectonic and climate changes in an active orogen: a multi-disciplinary approach. The aim of this project is to quantify the efficiency of coupling between tectonics, climate and erosion in an active mountain belt, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, by combining world-class expertise in a range of fields, including the collection and analysis of thermochronological data, the analysis of digital elevation maps, morphometric field measurements, and the development and use of numerical models, both tectonic and geomorphic. In particular, it is proposed to develop and use unique quantitative methods to interpret thermochronological data. This work will help resolve the current debate concerning the potential feedback between climate and tectonics.Read moreRead less
Computationally Modelling a Volcano: Flow and Stability. Mainland Australia is fortunate not to suffer directly from active volcanism. However, this does not mean volcanoes are of little importance. The products of ancient eruptions can define the wealth of a nation. But they are also highly destructive and there are currently 30 active volcanoes capable of generating a tsunami that could affect Australia. Understanding the physical processes using computational models is essential to save lives ....Computationally Modelling a Volcano: Flow and Stability. Mainland Australia is fortunate not to suffer directly from active volcanism. However, this does not mean volcanoes are of little importance. The products of ancient eruptions can define the wealth of a nation. But they are also highly destructive and there are currently 30 active volcanoes capable of generating a tsunami that could affect Australia. Understanding the physical processes using computational models is essential to save lives and help us benefit from their products. This is a relatively new research field and owing to the resources in Australia, our research team has the potential to be at the forefront. There is also the capability to build and impressive research team within the University of Queensland.Read moreRead less
Walking with dinosaurs in the Kimberley: mapping the Cretaceous landscapes of the Dampier Peninsula. The coastline of the Dampier Peninsula, Western Australia, preserves what is arguably one the largest and most significant stretches of dinosaur track-sites in the world. Despite recent National Heritage listing, the majority of these tracksites are largely undocumented, such that their full scientific significance is poorly understood. The aim of this project is to digitally map the dinosaur tra ....Walking with dinosaurs in the Kimberley: mapping the Cretaceous landscapes of the Dampier Peninsula. The coastline of the Dampier Peninsula, Western Australia, preserves what is arguably one the largest and most significant stretches of dinosaur track-sites in the world. Despite recent National Heritage listing, the majority of these tracksites are largely undocumented, such that their full scientific significance is poorly understood. The aim of this project is to digitally map the dinosaur tracksites of the Dampier Peninsula, utilising high-resolution aerial photography with both manned and unmanned aircraft, airborne and hand-held LiDAR imaging, and digital photogrammetry. The results will allow us to construct high-resolution, three-dimensional digital outcrop models of the tracksites, and bring the 130 million-year-old landscapes back to life.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100205
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$367,000.00
Summary
Searching for Life on Mars on Earth. Australia continues to play a world-leading role in researching planetary habitability. This project will deliver the most comprehensive investigation of Earth’s oldest known river/lake deposits, uniquely preserved in 2.8 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia. Using the candidate’s expertise in field investigation in combination with a cutting-edge analytical approach, the project will produce a detailed reconstruction of the ancient lake environment. S ....Searching for Life on Mars on Earth. Australia continues to play a world-leading role in researching planetary habitability. This project will deliver the most comprehensive investigation of Earth’s oldest known river/lake deposits, uniquely preserved in 2.8 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia. Using the candidate’s expertise in field investigation in combination with a cutting-edge analytical approach, the project will produce a detailed reconstruction of the ancient lake environment. Similar settings will be explored by NASA's upcoming Mars 2020 rover mission at it's landing site in Jezero Crater. Mission data will be analysed by the candidate, who will guide the selection of samples and address the overarching question of whether microbal life ever existed on Mars.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL0992245
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,088,350.00
Summary
The Virtual Geological Observatory: a four dimensional view into the Earth through deep-time data-mining. The Fellowship aims to reveal the underlying processes of plate tectonic cycles, paleogeography, sea-level change and the formation of ore deposits and hydrocarbon resources since the explosion of life during the Cambrian period. Using a mantle convection framework, we will discover how the cyclicity in mid-ocean ridge creation and the subduction dynamics associated with the aggregation and ....The Virtual Geological Observatory: a four dimensional view into the Earth through deep-time data-mining. The Fellowship aims to reveal the underlying processes of plate tectonic cycles, paleogeography, sea-level change and the formation of ore deposits and hydrocarbon resources since the explosion of life during the Cambrian period. Using a mantle convection framework, we will discover how the cyclicity in mid-ocean ridge creation and the subduction dynamics associated with the aggregation and dispersal of Gondwana and Pangea has been driving plate tectonic cycles and cyclicity at the Earth's surface. A Virtual Geological Observatory will transform our understanding of this ancient world by fusing geodata-mining and high-performance computer simulation outputs in the plate-tectonic context.Read moreRead less
Tectonic Reconstruction of the Evolution of the Alpine-Himalayan Orogenic Chain. This project will construct a computationally explicit model of movements in the solid Earth for the past 150 million years, to study the Earth as a complex system during the collision that produced the Alpine-Himalayan mountain belt. This is the youngest collisional mountain belt on Earth, and at times it stretched from Spain to New Zealand. Earth Scientists want to understand the processes that took place to mak ....Tectonic Reconstruction of the Evolution of the Alpine-Himalayan Orogenic Chain. This project will construct a computationally explicit model of movements in the solid Earth for the past 150 million years, to study the Earth as a complex system during the collision that produced the Alpine-Himalayan mountain belt. This is the youngest collisional mountain belt on Earth, and at times it stretched from Spain to New Zealand. Earth Scientists want to understand the processes that took place to make it, in particular the role of ribbon continents. As a result of this work ordinary Australians will be able to better perceive their interactions with their nearest neighbours.Read moreRead less
Computer simulation to study emergence of material texture in the Earth and Plate Tectonics. Plate tectonics has played a crucial role in the evolution and dynamics of the earth impacting on the diversity of life, mineralisation, and crustal dynamics. Despite its significance, how and under what conditions material texture and plate tectonics emerge from a proto-planet is not well understood. New computational methodologies to simulate the evolution of the plate-mantle system will be used to stu ....Computer simulation to study emergence of material texture in the Earth and Plate Tectonics. Plate tectonics has played a crucial role in the evolution and dynamics of the earth impacting on the diversity of life, mineralisation, and crustal dynamics. Despite its significance, how and under what conditions material texture and plate tectonics emerge from a proto-planet is not well understood. New computational methodologies to simulate the evolution of the plate-mantle system will be used to study how the upper mantle emerges as a thermo-mechanically distinct boundary layer, how this emergent structure relates to anisotropy in the upper mantle, and how it is affected by cross-scale effects controlling fault zone behaviour and crustal dynamics.Read moreRead less
Unraveling the geology of Mars. This project aims to use a suite of innovative conceptual and technical tools that target specific weaknesses in existing Mars exploration programs – where comparatively modest investment could deliver transformative change in one of the largest global research efforts, on which current expenditure is in billions of dollars. The project expects to provide context for the geologic processes that affected Mars. Expected outcomes include a better understanding of the ....Unraveling the geology of Mars. This project aims to use a suite of innovative conceptual and technical tools that target specific weaknesses in existing Mars exploration programs – where comparatively modest investment could deliver transformative change in one of the largest global research efforts, on which current expenditure is in billions of dollars. The project expects to provide context for the geologic processes that affected Mars. Expected outcomes include a better understanding of the habitability and geological history of Mars as well as facilitating both future mission landing site selection and providing context for comparison to the early history of Earth.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL110100074
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,627,006.00
Summary
Meteorite fireballs - illuminating the origins of the solar system. Meteorites are ancient rocks, containing a record of what conditions were like when the solar system was young; but to understand that record we need to know where they come from. This project will deliver these data, providing us with a template to understand how our planetary system came into being.
Uncovering ancient landscapes with emerging technologies: integrating complex geospatial and fossil data to explore late Cenozoic environmental change. This project aims to use emerging technologies to unravel relationships between prehistoric climate changes and environmental impacts in northern Australia. Given current uncertainty about impacts of contemporary climate change on our biota, it is important to document the outcomes of past climatic changes and, in particular, the globally critica ....Uncovering ancient landscapes with emerging technologies: integrating complex geospatial and fossil data to explore late Cenozoic environmental change. This project aims to use emerging technologies to unravel relationships between prehistoric climate changes and environmental impacts in northern Australia. Given current uncertainty about impacts of contemporary climate change on our biota, it is important to document the outcomes of past climatic changes and, in particular, the globally critical period between 15 and five million years ago that shaped modern Australian environments. Fossil-rich deposits in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area of northern Queensland span this period. Interpretation of their fine-grained record of impact and change will improve our ability to predict and hence better manage impacts of future climate change on our unique national natural heritage.Read moreRead less