January Dinner Meeting – 2018

August 16, 2017 at McFate Brewing Company

Speaker: Kelin Whipple, ASU, SESE

Topic: Interpreting Active Tectonics from Topography

Sponsored by: Tensar International Corporation

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Landform analysis has become a standard tool in neotectonic studies.  The timescales recorded in deformed landforms importantly bridge the gap between geodetic and geologic methods.  Most commonly the offset, tilting, and warping of abandoned depositional landforms is used to infer deformation rates and patterns.  Whereas such analyses of static landforms has become well developed, complementary approaches to extract quantitative information about tectonics from erosional landscapes are relatively new, rapidly evolving, and can provide powerful insight.  Over the last couple decades, some useful general rules about the expression of rock uplift rate in erosional landscapes have been developed that can guide and augment studies of the spatial and temporal distribution of active rock uplift.  At catchment scale, the relationship between landscape form and rock uplift is dictated largely by the response of stream profiles to rock uplift, which is largely one of changing channel steepness (gradient adjusted for drainage area).  Changes in channel steepness along a stream can be either abrupt (discrete slope-break knickpoints) or gradual (expressed as zones of enhanced or reduced river profile concavity) depending on the deformation pattern.  Landforms can record information about both spatial and temporal patterns in rock uplift rate.  Landscapes in various parts of the Himalaya exemplify both spatial and temporal influences.  I first highlight lessons learned about the relationships among topography, climate, and erosion rates from studies using cosmogenic isotopic concentrations in river sands over the last decade that importantly guide tectonic interpretation of landscapes. Then I illustrate application of these methods to three sectors of the Himalaya-Tibetan orogenic system: (1) the NW Himalaya in Pakistan (location of the 2005 Kashmir (Muzaffarabad earthquake), (2) the Longmenshan on the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau (location of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake), and (3) the central Himalaya in Nepal (location of the 2015 Gorkha earthquake). I show that both the 2005 Kashmir EQ and the 2008 Sichuan EQ occurred on steep out-of-sequence thrusts in events predicable from the topography. The central Nepal location is interesting in that the topography indicates a similar architecture of active faults, but the long-expected 2015 Gorkha EQ ruptured the gently dipping basal decollement and not the inferred steep out-of-sequence fault. I explore the implications of the 2015 Gorkha EQ, and controversy around interpretations of structural architecture, in some depth.

Ama Drime Range, Tibet

Food Preparation and Art

Uses of Basalt in Prehistoric Contexts at Archaeological

Sites near the Salt and Gila Rivers in what is Now Central Arizona

The use of basalt in food preparation and art in prehistoric contexts was worldwide. Sourcing, selection and if needed the forming of the basalt was largely dependent on the intended use.

In both food preparation and art there was overlap in the rock type available and chosen, as it ranged from vesicular to smooth, from horizontal bedrock to sheer vertical face and from the labor of quarrying to a short stroll for a large rock canvas. This presentation will take focused looks at two different types of basalt applied to two different human needs.

Speaker: John D. Rockhill

John D. Rockhill is an archaeologist with Amec Foster Wheeler in Phoenix, Arizona with 20 years of field and laboratory experience in the southwestern United States, Egypt and Sudan. John was born and raised in Safford, Arizona and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology in 1975 from the U.S. Air Force Institute through the University of South Carolina. John has worked on and directed a number of field projects with emphasis on large scale survey, mapping and excavation of prehistoric and historic sites and their features and the laboratory analysis of lithic, glass and metal artifacts.

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Joint AEG/Geo-Institute June Dinner Meeting

Speaker: Enamul Hoque, President, Hoque & Associates, Inc.

Topic: Building Structures on Landfills

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Happy Hour: 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm

Dinner: 6:30 to 7:00 pm

Talk: 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm

McFate Brewing Company
1312 N Scottsdale Road
Scottsdale, AZ 85257
http://mcfatebrewing.com/

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SPONSORED BY: WILDCAT DRILLING, INC.

DATE: May 24, 2017

Speaker: Shay Carter, Scientific Software Engineer, Mars Space Flight Facility, ASU

Topic: JMARS – How a free open-source GIS platform can be of use to you.  An introduction about the basics of the software, and some more advanced abilities and applications.

https://jmars.asu.edu/

McFate Brewing Company
1312 N Scottsdale Road
Scottsdale, AZ 85257
http://mcfatebrewing.com/

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NOTICE! CHANGE OF DATE!

Date: April 26, 2017

Speaker: Dr. Jan Rasmussen, Jan Rasmussen Consulting

http://www.janrasmussen.com/consulting.html

Topic: Wulfenite in Arizona

Location: McFate Brewing Company

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Abstract:

‘Wulfenite in Arizona’ by Jan Rasmussen

Arizona is famous for its spectacular wulfenite specimens, such as the butterscotch-colored, bladed crystals from the Glove Mine south of Tucson. A recent bill in the Arizona legislature has designated wulfenite to be the state mineral.

Wulfenite (lead molybdate) forms in the oxidized zones of lead-zinc-silver deposits during later periods of alteration. The best large samples of wulfenite are associated with Laramide (~75 Ma), Jurassic (~190 Ma), or mid-Tertiary (~25 Ma) lead deposits where there are permeable fault zones with open space, open channelways, or caves. Microscopic specimens of wulfenite are associated with the later stages of porphyry copper or other types of ore deposits in the lead-zinc zones. Surprisingly, wulfenite does not occur in the presence of molybdenite, but rather occurs in close proximity to cerussite (lead carbonate) that has been altered from galena.

Museum quality specimens of wulfenite occur at the Glove Mine in the northwestern Santa Rita Mountains of Laramide age and at the Silver Bill, Defiance, Mystery, and Tom Scott mines in the Turquoise district (Courtland-Gleeson area in Cochise County) of Jurassic age. Mid-Tertiary age wulfenite samples are found at the Red Cloud Mine in La Paz County, Rowley Mine in Maricopa County, Old Yuma Mine in the northern Tucson Mountains, and the Mammoth-St. Anthony Mine at Tiger, AZ north of San Manuel.

Biography:

Dr. Jan Rasmussen is a consulting geologist in Tucson, specializing in writing permitting documents, such as Aquifer Protection Permits and Mine Plan of Operations, for consulting companies, such as SRK Consulting and other clients. As a Registered Geologist in Arizona and a Qualified Person with registration from SME, Jan has written Canadian National Instrument 43-101 reports for mining clients. Jan’s work in economic geology has included exploration for metallic and industrial mineral resources and most recently research with MagmaChem Exploration into ultra-deep hydrocarbon resources in the North Sea for a Norwegian oil company.

Jan earned a Ph.D. in economic geology from the University of Arizona in 1993 and then worked for Woodward-Clyde as a geochemist/economic geologist on the Yucca Mountain project in Nevada. Jan’s work there was recently published in the 2015 Geological Society of Nevada symposium volume.

Jan’s most recent full time job was as Curator of the Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum in Phoenix from 2007 through 2010.  Jan received the SME Individual GEM award in 2010 for her work in educating children about the importance of mining in their lives. Her interest in wulfenite started with her early research into molybdenum in Arizona with the Arizona Bureau of Mines (now the Arizona Geological Survey).

Throughout her career, Jan has been committed to educating people about geology and has taught Physical, Historical, and Environmental Geology as adjunct faculty for the University of Arizona, Austin Community College, Cochise College, and Pima Community College.

Jan has coauthored 14 books or open file reports on Arizona geology and numerous articles, most of which are available as pdf files on her website www.janrasmussen.com. Jan has recently started a photographic website, www.MiningMineralMuseum.com  about the Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum as it was in 2010.

Date: March 30, 2017  — 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Student Networking Night at ASU

Please join the Phoenix Chapter of the Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists (AEG), the American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG), and the Arizona Hydrological Society (AHS) at the 11th Annual Arizona AEG student night on March 30, 2017. This year at Student Networking Night we will pair students and professionals for mock interviews for the students and lightning talks by professionals. This is an opportunity for students to learn how diverse the geologic field is and what varying aspects are available as a professional. This is also a night for professionals to meet students and learn what they are studying and what they hope to do once they graduate.

The event will begin at 6:00 pm and will be held in the La Paz Room of the Student Memorial Union on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University (301 E. Orange Mall
Tempe, AZ 85281). For directions, please refer to the map of the ASU Campus and Student Memorial Union, or visit http://www.asu.edu/map/interactive/.

RSVP HERE!

Students and professionals, please send resumes to aeg.arizona@gmail.com for us to pair teams together.

Students, if you’d like to participate in our resume workshop, please email aeg.arizona@gmail.com and indicate resume workshop.

Professionals that would like to give a 5 to 10 minute presentation on your role in your firm and your experience as a geologist or engineer, please contact Danielle Smilovsky (Danielle.Smilovsky@amecfw.com).

Join us for our January 2017 Dinner Meeting at McFate Brewing Company in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Our speaker will be Mr. Geno Mammini, R.G. who will be presenting on Groundwater Recharge – Siting, Design, Operation, and Enhancement.

GROUNDWATER RECHARGE – SITING, DESIGN, OPERATION, AND ENHANCEMENT

Geno Mammini, R.G. is a senior project hydrogeologist at Clear Creek Associates with over 16 years of experience in hydrogeologic and environmental consulting.  Geno graduated with his Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from California State University – Sonoma in 2000.  Geno is a Registered Geologist in Arizona and Washington, and is the groundwater chair for the Tri-State Seminar, an annual event held in Las Vegas that focuses on educating water professionals.  Geno has managed the design and construction of numerous public supply wells, ASR wells, vadose zone injection wells, and groundwater recharge basins, and has also conducted studies to enhance performance of recharge facilities.

Groundwater recharge remains an important water resources management tool in the southwest.  However, with today’s economic conditions, public and private entities alike must get the greatest return possible for each recharge investment dollar.  That is why it is critical to properly locate, construct, and operate recharge facilities to maximize their capability to efficiently recharge groundwater, both in the short-term and over the long haul.  This presentation will review types of recharge technologies including vadose zone methods and direct injection systems, and will discuss factors that should be considered during each stage of the recharge project from siting through design and ultimately operation.  Case studies will be sited to support hydrogeologic and costing assumptions.

Thank you to our sponsor Clear Creek Associates and Geo-Logic Associates: