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Antarctic Marine Geologic Research at FSU
RESEARCH AREAS
The Antarctic Marine Geology Research Facility, an adjunct of the Florida State University Department of Geological Sciences,
is a national repository for geological materials collected in polar regions. The Facility houses over 25,000 meters of deep-sea
geological core samples recovered primarily from the Southern Ocean and the Antarctic continent.
PROJECTS
IODP (needs text)
SHALDRIL is group of U.S. scientists planning to deploy drill rig on the RV/IB Nathaniel B. Palmer in order to test and demonstrate the
feasibility of shipbased diamond coring along the Antarctic continental margin. If successful, this type of mobile and flexible drilling
system will then be available to the broader scientific community for further exploration of the gap that currently exists in our technical
capability to explore the Antarctic shelves between the shore-line/fast-ice margin and the continental slope. SHALDRIL will be able to
operate effectively in the "no man's land" that exists between the nearshore (where the fast-ice-based Cape Roberts Project was successful)
and the upper slope (where ODP's JOIDES Resolution becomes most efficient).
ANDRILL (Antarctic Drilling) is an international initiative representing over
150 scientists from Germany, Italy, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, designed to investigate Antarctica's role in
Cenozoic global environmental change. ANDRILL proposes to obtain a reference record of key stratigraphic intervals in the high southern
latitudes proximal to the dynamic Antarctic cryosphere. Four scientific themes will provide ANDRILL's focus in an integrated approach
involving geophysical surveys, core recovery, and numerical modeling: (1) the history of Antarctic climate and ice sheets; (2) the
evolution of polar biota; (3) the history of Antarctic tectonism; and (4) Antarctica's role in the Earth ocean-climate system. The
planned program will use improved drilling technology that enables excellent recovery of targets beneath ice and land. The ANDRILL
McMurdo Sound Portfolio (MSP) proposes to drill five sites in the McMurdo Sound region, in areas that will maximize recovery of new spatial
and temporal stratigraphic records. Results will contribute to the goals of other international science initiatives and provide key
insights into (A) the development and behavior of the Antarctic cryospheric system (ice sheet, ice shelf, and sea ice) and the magnitude
and frequency of its changes on centennial to millennial time scales, (B) the evolution and timing of major tectonic episodes in
Antarctica and the stratigraphic development of sedimentary basins, and (C) the influence of Antarctic ice sheets on Cenozoic climate,
the modulation of thermohaline ocean circulation, and eustatic sea level change. The planned program will bring together a team of
international scientists, educators, and students, and will provide unique opportunities to share aspects of Antarctic Earth science
with the global community.
FACILITIES
Antarctic Research Facility
LINKS
NSF Office of Polar Programs
NSF Antarctic Sciences Section
FACULTY
Sherwood W. Wise Jr., Principal Investigator
Matthew Olney, ARF Facility Manager/Curator
Matt Curren, ARF Assistant Curator
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