Author(s): Brian Angell
Mentor(s): Alex Tye, Alyssa Abbey
Institution UTech
The Rio Grande Rift is a continental rift zone of interest in the western US which lies adjacent to the Basin and Range Province and is separated from it by the Colorado Plateau. Studying sediment provenance and volcanic ash ages in the relatively young Dry Union and Santa Fe formations aims to elucidate how the Rio Grande Rift has evolved over geologic time. Stratigraphic sections have been logged, clasts within conglomerate beds have been counted, and sandstone and volcanic ash samples have been collected for geochronological dating. Clast counts within this study area focus on a particular range of grain sizes within the Dry Union and Santa Fe formations to offer insights into sediment provenance, and when integrated with the maximum depositional ages of samples within stratigraphic section, give clarity in the evolution of crustal extension in the northern Rio Grande Rift, the history of tectonic uplift, the timing of sediment deposition, the nature of depositional settings, and the paleo flow of the ancestral Arkansas River. Detailed section measurements of the Dry Union and Santa Fe formations have been recorded and digitized to create a comprehensive stratigraphic column to be used for data analysis which will aid in the study of changes in sediment source area, and to better understand the historical development of the depositional environment. The findings of this research enhance the acumen of crustal dynamics and lithospheric processes within continental rift zones and their significance in shaping the broader geologic framework of Earth and contributing to the study of tectonic processes globally.