DOCSLIB.ORG

Birth and Evolution of the Rio Grande Fluvial

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Birth and Evolution of the Rio Grande Fluvial University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations Fall 9-21-2016 Birth and evolution of the Rio Grande fluvial system in the last 8 Ma:Progressive downward integration and interplay between tectonics, volcanism, climate, and river evolution Marisa N. Repasch Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/eps_etds Part of the Geology Commons, Geomorphology Commons, Hydrology Commons, Other Earth Sciences Commons, Sedimentology Commons, Tectonics and Structure Commons, and the Volcanology Commons Recommended Citation Repasch, Marisa N.. "Birth and evolution of the Rio Grande fluvial system in the last 8 Ma:Progressive downward integration and interplay between tectonics, volcanism, climate, and river evolution." (2016). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/eps_etds/139 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Marisa Repasch Candidate Earth and Planetary Sciences Department This thesis is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Thesis Committee: Karl Karlstrom Laura Crossey Matt Heizler i BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF THE RIO GRANDE FLUVIAL SYSTEM IN THE LAST 8 MA: PROGRESSIVE DOWNWARD INTEGRATION AND INTERPLAY BETWEEN TECTONICS, VOLCANISM, CLIMATE, AND RIVER EVOLUTION BY MARISA REPASCH B.S. EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES LEHIGH UNIVERSITY 2014 M.S. THESIS Submitted in partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science Earth and Planetary Sciences The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico December, 2016 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I acknowledge my advisor, Karl Karlstrom, for all of the guidance, time, and energy he invested in my research, professional development, and personal well-being. As a result of his mentorship I have gained broad and diverse geological skillsets, improved my aptitude for answering geological problems, and developed the confidence I need to succeed in academia. I need to thank Matt Heizler and Lisa Peters at the New Mexico Geochronology Research Laboratory in Socorro, NM. Acquisition of my 40Ar/39Ar data greatly contributed to our overall understanding of the Taos Plateau, which would have been impossible without their hard work and patience in the lab. Next I express gratitude to all of the professors who influenced me academically over the last two years, including Laura Crossey, Grant Meyer, Yemane Asmerom, Joe Galewsky, and Sean Penman. Through their pedagogy I gained valuable skills in geochemistry, geomorphology, numerical modeling, and geospatial analysis. These skills continue to be valuable to me as I continue my academic career in the Earth Sciences. I must also recognize the numerous organizations that provided the funding that made my research possible, including National Science Foundation (NSF) EPSCOR award #IIA-1301346 to Laura Crossey and Karl Karlstrom, the Geological Society of America/ExxonMobil student geoscience grant, the New Mexico Geological Society, and the University of New Mexico Graduate-Professional Student Association. iii BIRTH AND EVOLUTION OF THE RIO GRANDE FLUVIAL SYSTEM IN THE LAST 8 MA: PROGRESSIVE DOWNWARD INTEGRATION AND INTERPLAY BETWEEN TECTONICS, VOLCANISM, CLIMATE, AND RIVER EVOLUTION by Marisa Repasch B.S., Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 2014 M.S., Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico, 2016 ABSTRACT The Rio Grande-Rio Chama (RG-RC) fluvial system has evolved dramatically over the last 8 Ma, undergoing channel migrations, drainage capture and integration events, volcanic damming, and carving and refilling of paleocanyons. Volcanism concurrent with the development of the river system provides a unique opportunity to apply multiple geochronometers to the study of its incision and drainage evolution. This paper reports 19 new 40Ar/39Ar basalt ages and 19 detrital mineral samples (zircon and sanidine) collected from RG-RC alluvium overlain by dated basalt flows in the context of a compilation of published 40Ar/39Ar basalt ages. The “run-out” geometry of 4.8 Ma basalts at Black Mesa suggests that the course of the northern Rio Grande connecting the San Luis to Española basins was established by then. Detrital zircon age spectra for ancestral Rio Grande alluvium underlying these basalt flows contain 10-12% of 37-27 Ma grains suggesting that the ~5 Ma Rio Grande had its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains. The 5-3 Ma accumulation of basalt flows on the Taos Plateau was accompanied by inset relationships downstream (near Black Mesa) documenting the iv existence of a developing 5-2.5 Ma Rio Grande valley that provided downstream discharge. Coincident timing and pre-volcanic knickpoints suggest that surface uplift associated with the construction of the Taos Plateau volcanic field drove downward integration to the Palomas basin by 4.5 Ma. Changes in ancestral Rio Grande sediment provenance from 2.6 Ma to 1.6 Ma document a northward shift of the RG-RC confluence and indicate that surface uplift of the Jemez Mountains (Valles Caldera) likely drove further downstream integration. The Taos Plateau volcanic field reduced through-flowing surface drainage from the San Juan Mountains relative to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains until the ~0.69-0.44 Ma spillover of Lake Alamosa, but we view this event as a re- integration, not initial integration, of upper Rio Grande drainage. Progressive downward integration of rift-aligned basins from 8 to 1 Ma was likely facilitated by waning rift extension that allowed aggradation to exceed subsidence. Downward integration events crudely mimic climate change “events” at 6 Ma (onset of the southwestern monsoon) and 2.5 Ma (global change toward glacial-interglacial climate). Magmatic influences include the 6-2.5 Ma building of the Taos Plateau volcanic field, Jemez Mountain caldera eruptions at 1.6 and 1.25 Ma, along with continued magmatism that developed constructional topography and Jemez lineament volcanism that may have been associated with mantle-driven epeirogenic uplift across northern New Mexico. Integration of the RG-RC system to the Gulf of Mexico by 0.8 Ma was facilitated by headwater uplift as well as increased frequency of ~100 ka high-amplitude glacial-interglacial cycles that contributed to higher discharge and bedrock incision rates during the Pleistocene. We conclude that magmatic and tectonic drivers dominated over v the last ~8 Ma, but were amplified by climate change events to determine the fluvial evolution of the RG-RC system. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………….……………….xiv 2. ANNOTATED SYNTHESIS OF PREVIOUS WORK………………………..4 2.1. Role of Rio Grande rift structure and magmatism in localizing drainage…………………………………………………………….…………4 2.2. Summary of axial facies (trunk rivers) of rift basins ..............................6 2.3. Lava dams and interactions between the river and volcanism .............12 2.4. The “Turnaround” from aggradation to incision ..................................15 2.5. Red River headwaters and spillover of Lake Alamosa hypotheses ......17 2.6. Roles of climate and tectonics ..............................................................20 3. NEW RESEARCH……………………………………………………………...22 3.1. METHODS .............................................................................................22 3.1.1. River profile analysis ............................................................................22 3.1.2. Application of multiple geochronometers ............................................23 3.1.3. 40Ar/39Ar basalt geochronology ............................................................24 3.1.4. U-Pb Detrital Zircon Geochronology ...................................................24 3.1.5. 40Ar/39Ar detrital sanidine geochronology ............................................26 3.2. RESULTS ................................................................................................27 3.2.1. Samples analyzed .................................................................................27 3.2.2. River profile analysis ............................................................................30 3.2.3. 40Ar/39Ar Basalt Ages for the Taos Plateau Volcanic Field .................32 3.2.3.1. Old State Bridge, Colorado .............................................................33 3.2.3.2. La Junta Point ..................................................................................33 3.2.3.3. Dunn Bridge Section .......................................................................34 3.2.3.4. Gorge Bridge Section ......................................................................35 3.2.3.5. Pilar Mesa ........................................................................................36 vii 3.2.3.6. Rinconada ........................................................................................37 3.2.3.7. Black Mesa-La Mesita Area ............................................................37 3.2.4. Detrital zircon and sanidine analysis ....................................................38 3.2.4.1. Ancestral Rio Grande-Rio Chama system (5 to 1 Ma) ...................40 3.2.4.2. Late Pleistocene to modern Rio Grande- Rio Chama system (640 to 0 ka)……………………………………………………………….46 3.3. INTERPRETATION…………………………………………………………...51
Load more

Recommended publications
  • University of Oklahoma Graduate College
    UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE POTENTIAL FIELD STUDIES OF THE CENTRAL SAN LUIS BASIN AND SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS, COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO, AND SOUTHERN AND WESTERN AFGHANISTAN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By BENJAMIN JOHN DRENTH Norman, Oklahoma 2009 POTENTIAL FIELD STUDIES OF THE CENTRAL SAN LUIS BASIN AND SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS, COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO, AND SOUTHERN AND WESTERN AFGHANISTAN A DISSERTATION APPROVED FOR THE CONOCOPHILLIPS SCHOOL OF GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS BY _______________________________ Dr. G. Randy Keller, Chair _______________________________ Dr. V.J.S. Grauch _______________________________ Dr. Carol Finn _______________________________ Dr. R. Douglas Elmore _______________________________ Dr. Ze’ev Reches _______________________________ Dr. Carl Sondergeld © Copyright by BENJAMIN JOHN DRENTH 2009 All Rights Reserved. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..……1 Chapter A: Geophysical Constraints on Rio Grande Rift Structure in the Central San Luis Basin, Colorado and New Mexico………………………………………………………...2 Chapter B: A Geophysical Study of the San Juan Mountains Batholith, southwestern Colorado………………………………………………………………………………….61 Chapter C: Geophysical Expression of Intrusions and Tectonic Blocks of Southern and Western Afghanistan…………………………………………………………………....110 Conclusions……………………………………………………………………………..154 iv LIST OF TABLES Chapter A: Geophysical Constraints on Rio Grande Rift Structure in the Central
    [Show full text]
  • An Environmental History of the Middle Rio Grande Basin
    United States Department of From the Rio to the Sierra: Agriculture Forest Service An Environmental History of Rocky Mountain Research Station the Middle Rio Grande Basin Fort Collins, Colorado 80526 General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-5 Dan Scurlock i Scurlock, Dan. 1998. From the rio to the sierra: An environmental history of the Middle Rio Grande Basin. General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-5. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 440 p. Abstract Various human groups have greatly affected the processes and evolution of Middle Rio Grande Basin ecosystems, especially riparian zones, from A.D. 1540 to the present. Overgrazing, clear-cutting, irrigation farming, fire suppression, intensive hunting, and introduction of exotic plants have combined with droughts and floods to bring about environmental and associated cultural changes in the Basin. As a result of these changes, public laws were passed and agencies created to rectify or mitigate various environmental problems in the region. Although restoration and remedial programs have improved the overall “health” of Basin ecosystems, most old and new environmental problems persist. Keywords: environmental impact, environmental history, historic climate, historic fauna, historic flora, Rio Grande Publisher’s Note The opinions and recommendations expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the USDA Forest Service. Mention of trade names does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the Federal Government. The author withheld diacritical marks from the Spanish words in text for consistency with English punctuation. Publisher Rocky Mountain Research Station Fort Collins, Colorado May 1998 You may order additional copies of this publication by sending your mailing information in label form through one of the following media.
    [Show full text]
  • Geologic Map of the Central San Juan Caldera Cluster, Southwestern Colorado by Peter W
    Geologic Map of the Central San Juan Caldera Cluster, Southwestern Colorado By Peter W. Lipman Pamphlet to accompany Geologic Investigations Series I–2799 dacite Ceobolla Creek Tuff Nelson Mountain Tuff, rhyolite Rat Creek Tuff, dacite Cebolla Creek Tuff Rat Creek Tuff, rhyolite Wheeler Geologic Monument (Half Moon Pass quadrangle) provides exceptional exposures of three outflow tuff sheets erupted from the San Luis caldera complex. Lowest sheet is Rat Creek Tuff, which is nonwelded throughout but grades upward from light-tan rhyolite (~74% SiO2) into pale brown dacite (~66% SiO2) that contains sparse dark-brown andesitic scoria. Distinctive hornblende-rich middle Cebolla Creek Tuff contains basal surge beds, overlain by vitrophyre of uniform mafic dacite that becomes less welded upward. Uppermost Nelson Mountain Tuff consists of nonwelded to weakly welded, crystal-poor rhyolite, which grades upward to a densely welded caprock of crystal-rich dacite (~68% SiO2). White arrows show contacts between outflow units. 2006 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey CONTENTS Geologic setting . 1 Volcanism . 1 Structure . 2 Methods of study . 3 Description of map units . 4 Surficial deposits . 4 Glacial deposits . 4 Postcaldera volcanic rocks . 4 Hinsdale Formation . 4 Los Pinos Formation . 5 Oligocene volcanic rocks . 5 Rocks of the Creede Caldera cycle . 5 Creede Formation . 5 Fisher Dacite . 5 Snowshoe Mountain Tuff . 6 Rocks of the San Luis caldera complex . 7 Rocks of the Nelson Mountain caldera cycle . 7 Rocks of the Cebolla Creek caldera cycle . 9 Rocks of the Rat Creek caldera cycle . 10 Lava flows premonitory(?) to San Luis caldera complex . .11 Rocks of the South River caldera cycle .
    [Show full text]
  • Ground-Water Geochemistry of the Albuquerque-Belen Basin, Central New Mexico
    GROUND-WA TER GEOCHEMISTRY OF THE ALBVQVERQVE-BELEN BASIN, CENTRAL NEW MEXICO By Scott K. Anderholm U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Water-Resources Investigations Report 86-4094 Albuquerque, New Mexico 1988 DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR DONALD PAUL MODEL, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Dallas L. Peck, Director For additional information Copies of this report can write to: be purchased from: District Chief U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Division Books and Open-File Reports Pinetree Office Park Federal Center, Building 810 4501 Indian School Rd. NE, Suite 200 Box 25425 Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110 Denver, Colorado 80225 CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................. 1 Introduction ......................................................... 2 Acknowledgments ................................................. 4 Purpose and scope ............................................... 4 Location ........................................................ 4 Climate ......................................................... 6 Previous investigations ......................................... 6 Geology .................................................... 6 Hydrology .................................................. 6 Well-numbering system ........................................... 9 Geology .............................................................. 10 Precambrian rocks ............................................... 10 Paleozoic rocks ................................................. 10 Mesozoic
    [Show full text]
  • Geology and Mineral Resources of Sierra Nacimiento and Vicinity, New
    iv Contents ABSTRACT 7 TERTIARY-QUATERNARY 47 INTRODUCTION 7 QUATERNARY 48 LOCATION 7 Bandelier Tuff 48 PHYSIOGRAPHY 9 Surficial deposits 48 PREVIOUS WORK 9 PALEOTECTONIC SETTING 48 ROCKS AND FORMATIONS 9 REGIONAL TECTONIC SETTING 49 PRECAMBRIAN 9 STRUCTURE 49 Northern Nacimiento area 9 NACIMIENTO UPLIFT 49 Southern Nacimiento area 15 Nacimiento fault 51 CAMBRIAN-ORDOVICIAN (?) 20 Pajarito fault 52 MISSISSIPPIAN 20 Synthetic reverse faults 52 Arroyo Peñasco Formation 20 Eastward-trending faults 53 Log Springs Formation 21 Trail Creek fault 53 PENNSYLVANIAN 21 Antithetic reverse faults 53 Osha Canyon Formation 23 Normal faults 53 Sandia Formation 23 Folds 54 Madera Formation 23 SAN JUAN BASIN 55 Paleotectonic interpretation 25 En echelon folds 55 PERMIAN 25 Northeast-trending faults 55 Abo Formation 25 Synclinal bend 56 Yeso Formation 27 Northerly trending normal faults 56 Glorieta Sandstone 30 Antithetic reverse faults 56 Bernal Formation 30 GALLINA-ARCHULETA ARCH 56 TRIASSIC 30 CHAMA BASIN 57 Chinle Formation 30 RIΟ GRANDE RIFT 57 JURASSIC 34 JEMEZ VOLCANIC FIELD 59 Entrada Sandstone 34 TECTONIC EVOLUTION 60 Todilto Formation 34 MINERAL AND ENERGY RESOURCES 63 Morrison Formation 34 COPPER 63 Depositional environments 37 Mineralization 63 CRETACEOUS 37 Origin 67 Dakota Formation 37 AGGREGATE 69 Mancos Shale 39 TRAVERTINE 70 Mesaverde Group 40 GYPSUM 70 Lewis Shale 41 COAL 70 Pictured Cliffs Sandstone 41 ΗUMΑTE 70 Fruitland Formation and Kirtland Shale URANIUM 70 undivided 42 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY 72 TERTIARY 42 OIL AND GAS 72 Ojo Alamo Sandstone
    [Show full text]
  • The Bearhead Rhyolite, Jemez Volcanic Field, NM
    Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 107 32001) 241±264 www.elsevier.com/locate/jvolgeores Effusive eruptions from a large silicic magma chamber: the Bearhead Rhyolite, Jemez volcanic ®eld, NM Leigh Justet*, Terry L. Spell Department of Geosciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, 89154-4010, USA Received 23 February 2000; accepted 6 November 2000 Abstract Large continental silicic magma systems commonly produce voluminous ignimbrites and associated caldera collapse events. Less conspicuous and relatively poorly documented are cases in which silicic magma chambers of similar size to those associated with caldera-forming events produce dominantly effusive eruptions of small-volume rhyolite domes and ¯ows. The Bearhead Rhyolite and associated Peralta Tuff Member in the Jemez volcanic ®eld, New Mexico, represent small-volume eruptions from a large silicic magma system in which no caldera-forming event occurred, and thus may have implications for the genesis and eruption of large volumes of silicic magma and the long-term evolution of continental silicic magma systems. 40Ar/39Ar dating reveals that most units mapped as Bearhead Rhyolite and Peralta Tuff 3the Main Group) were erupted during an ,540 ka interval between 7.06 and 6.52 Ma. These rocks de®ne a chemically coherent group of high-silica rhyolites that can be related by simple fractional crystallization models. Preceding the Main Group, minor amounts of unrelated trachydacite and low silica rhyolite were erupted at ,11±9 and ,8 Ma, respectively, whereas subsequent to the Main Group minor amounts of unrelated rhyolites were erupted at ,6.1 and ,1.5 Ma. The chemical coherency, apparent fractional crystallization-derived geochemical trends, large areal distribution of rhyolite domes 3,200 km2), and presence of a major hydrothermal system support the hypothesis that Main Group magmas were derived from a single, large, shallow magma chamber.
    [Show full text]
  • Geology of the Cebolla Quadrangle, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    BULLETIN 92 Geology of the Cebolla Quadrangle Rio Arriba County, New Mexico by HUGH H. DONEY 1 9 6 8 STATE BUREAU OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY CAMPUS STATION SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY STIRLING A. COLGATE, President STATE BUREAU OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES FRANK E. KOTTLOWSKI, Acting Director THE REGENTS MEMBERS Ex OFFICIO The Honorable David F. Cargo ...................................... Governor of New Mexico Leonard DeLayo ................................................. Superintendent of Public Instruction APPOINTED MEMBERS William G. Abbott .........................................................................................Hobbs Henry S. Birdseye ............................................................................... Albuquerque Thomas M. Cramer ................................................................................... Carlsbad Steve S. Torres, Jr. ....................................................................................... Socorro Richard M. Zimmerly .................................................................................... Socorro For sale by the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources Campus Station, Socorro, N. Mex. 87801—Price $3.00 Abstract The Cebolla quadrangle overlaps two physiographic provinces, the San Juan Basin and the Tusas Mountains. Westward-dipping Mesozoic rocks, Quaternary cinder cones and flow rock, and Quaternary gravel terraces occur in the Chama Basin of the San Juan
    [Show full text]
  • Ignimbrites to Batholiths Ignimbrites to Batholiths: Integrating Perspectives from Geological, Geophysical, and Geochronological Data
    Ignimbrites to batholiths Ignimbrites to batholiths: Integrating perspectives from geological, geophysical, and geochronological data Peter W. Lipman1,* and Olivier Bachmann2 1U.S. Geological Survey, Mail Stop 910, Menlo Park, California 94028, USA 2Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, ETH Zurich, CH-8092 Zürich, Switzerland ABSTRACT related intrusions cooled and solidified soon shorter. Magma-supply estimates (from ages after zircon crystallization, as magma sup- and volcano-plutonic volumes) yield focused Multistage histories of incremental accu- ply waned. Some researchers interpret these intrusion-assembly rates sufficient to gener- mulation, fractionation, and solidification results as recording pluton assembly in small ate ignimbrite-scale volumes of eruptible during construction of large subvolcanic increments that crystallized rapidly, leading magma, based on published thermal models. magma bodies that remained sufficiently to temporal disconnects between ignimbrite Mid-Tertiary processes of batholith assembly liquid to erupt are recorded by Tertiary eruption and intrusion growth. Alternatively, associated with the SRMVF caused drastic ignimbrites, source calderas, and granitoid crystallization ages of the granitic rocks chemical and physical reconstruction of the intrusions associated with large gravity lows are here inferred to record late solidifica- entire lithosphere, probably accompanied by at the Southern Rocky Mountain volcanic tion, after protracted open-system evolution asthenospheric input. field (SRMVF). Geophysical
    [Show full text]
  • Stratigraphic Nomenclature of ' Volcanic Rocks in the Jemez Mountains, New Mexico
    -» Stratigraphic Nomenclature of ' Volcanic Rocks in the Jemez Mountains, New Mexico By R. A. BAILEY, R. L. SMITH, and C. S. ROSS CONTRIBUTIONS TO STRATIGRAPHY » GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1274-P New Stratigraphic names and revisions in nomenclature of upper Tertiary and , Quaternary volcanic rocks in the Jemez Mountains UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR WALTER J. HICKEL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY William T. Pecora, Director U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1969 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 15 cents (paper cover) CONTENTS Page Abstract.._..._________-...______.._-.._._____.. PI Introduction. -_-________.._.____-_------___-_______------_-_---_-_ 1 General relations._____-___________--_--___-__--_-___-----___---__. 2 Keres Group..__________________--------_-___-_------------_------ 2 Canovas Canyon Rhyolite..__-__-_---_________---___-____-_--__ 5 Paliza Canyon Formation.___-_________-__-_-__-__-_-_______--- 6 Bearhead Rhyolite-___________________________________________ 8 Cochiti Formation.._______________________________________________ 8 Polvadera Group..______________-__-_------________--_-______---__ 10 Lobato Basalt______________________________________________ 10 Tschicoma Formation_______-__-_-____---_-__-______-______-- 11 El Rechuelos Rhyolite--_____---------_--------------_-_------- 11 Puye Formation_________________------___________-_--______-.__- 12 Tewa Group__._...._.______........___._.___.____......___...__ 12 Bandelier Tuff.______________.______________... 13 Tsankawi Pumice Bed._____________________________________ 14 Valles Rhyolite______.__-___---_____________.________..__ 15 Deer Canyon Member.______-_____-__.____--_--___-__-____ 15 Redondo Creek Member.__________________________________ 15 Valle Grande Member____-__-_--___-___--_-____-___-._-.__ 16 Battleship Rock Member...______________________________ 17 El Cajete Member____..._____________________ 17 Banco Bonito Member.___-_--_---_-_----_---_----._____--- 18 References .
    [Show full text]
  • Geologic Summary of the Abiquiu Quadrangle, North-Central New Mexico Florian Maldonado and Daniel P
    New Mexico Geological Society Downloaded from: http://nmgs.nmt.edu/publications/guidebooks/58 Geologic summary of the Abiquiu quadrangle, north-central New Mexico Florian Maldonado and Daniel P. Miggins, 2007, pp. 182-187 in: Geology of the Jemez Region II, Kues, Barry S., Kelley, Shari A., Lueth, Virgil W.; [eds.], New Mexico Geological Society 58th Annual Fall Field Conference Guidebook, 499 p. This is one of many related papers that were included in the 2007 NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebook. Annual NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebooks Every fall since 1950, the New Mexico Geological Society (NMGS) has held an annual Fall Field Conference that explores some region of New Mexico (or surrounding states). Always well attended, these conferences provide a guidebook to participants. Besides detailed road logs, the guidebooks contain many well written, edited, and peer-reviewed geoscience papers. These books have set the national standard for geologic guidebooks and are an essential geologic reference for anyone working in or around New Mexico. Free Downloads NMGS has decided to make peer-reviewed papers from our Fall Field Conference guidebooks available for free download. Non-members will have access to guidebook papers two years after publication. Members have access to all papers. This is in keeping with our mission of promoting interest, research, and cooperation regarding geology in New Mexico. However, guidebook sales represent a significant proportion of our operating budget. Therefore, only research papers are available for download. Road logs, mini-papers, maps, stratigraphic charts, and other selected content are available only in the printed guidebooks. Copyright Information Publications of the New Mexico Geological Society, printed and electronic, are protected by the copyright laws of the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • Cenozoic Thermal, Mechanical and Tectonic Evolution of the Rio Grande Rift
    JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 91, NO. B6, PAGES 6263-6276, MAY 10, 1986 Cenozoic Thermal, Mechanical and Tectonic Evolution of the Rio Grande Rift PAUL MORGAN1 Departmentof Geosciences,Purdue University,West Lafayette, Indiana WILLIAM R. SEAGER Departmentof Earth Sciences,New Mexico State University,Las Cruces MATTHEW P. GOLOMBEK Jet PropulsionLaboratory, CaliforniaInstitute of Technology,Pasadena Careful documentationof the Cenozoicgeologic history of the Rio Grande rift in New Mexico reveals a complexsequence of events.At least two phasesof extensionhave been identified.An early phase of extensionbegan in the mid-Oligocene(about 30 Ma) and may have continuedto the early Miocene (about 18 Ma). This phaseof extensionwas characterizedby local high-strainextension events (locally, 50-100%,regionally, 30-50%), low-anglefaulting, and the developmentof broad, relativelyshallow basins, all indicatingan approximatelyNE-SW •-25ø extensiondirection, consistent with the regionalstress field at that time.Extension events were not synchronousduring early phase extension and were often temporally and spatiallyassociated with major magmatism.A late phaseof extensionoccurred primarily in the late Miocene(10-5 Ma) with minor extensioncontinuing to the present.It was characterizedby apparently synchronous,high-angle faulting givinglarge verticalstrains with relativelyminor lateral strain (5-20%) whichproduced the moderuRio Granderift morphology.Extension direction was approximatelyE-W, consistentwith the contemporaryregional stress field. Late phasegraben or half-grabenbasins cut and often obscureearly phasebroad basins.Early phase extensionalstyle and basin formation indicate a ductilelithosphere, and this extensionoccurred during the climax of Paleogenemagmatic activity in this zone.Late phaseextensional style indicates a more brittle lithosphere,and this extensionfollowed a middle Miocenelull in volcanism.Regional uplift of about1 km appearsto haveaccompanied late phase extension, andrelatively minor volcanism has continued to thepresent.
    [Show full text]
  • Guidebook Contains Preliminary Findings of a Number of Concurrent Projects Being Worked on by the Trip Leaders
    TH FRIENDS OF THE PLEISTOCENE, ROCKY MOUNTAIN-CELL, 45 FIELD CONFERENCE PLIO-PLEISTOCENE STRATIGRAPHY AND GEOMORPHOLOGY OF THE CENTRAL PART OF THE ALBUQUERQUE BASIN OCTOBER 12-14, 2001 SEAN D. CONNELL New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources-Albuquerque Office, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 2808 Central Ave. SE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106 DAVID W. LOVE New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 801 Leroy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 JOHN D. SORRELL Tribal Hydrologist, Pueblo of Isleta, P.O. Box 1270, Isleta, NM 87022 J. BRUCE J. HARRISON Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology 801 Leroy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 Open-File Report 454C and D Initial Release: October 11, 2001 New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology 801 Leroy Place, Socorro, NM 87801 NMBGMR OFR454 C & D INTRODUCTION This field-guide accompanies the 45th annual Rocky Mountain Cell of the Friends of the Pleistocene (FOP), held at Isleta Lakes, New Mexico. The Friends of the Pleistocene is an informal gathering of Quaternary geologists, geomorphologists, and pedologists who meet annually in the field. The field guide has been separated into two parts. Part C (open-file report 454C) contains the three-days of road logs and stop descriptions. Part D (open-file report 454D) contains a collection of mini-papers relevant to field-trip stops. This field guide is a companion to open-file report 454A and 454B, which accompanied a field trip for the annual meeting of the Rocky Mountain/South Central Section of the Geological Society of America, held in Albuquerque in late April.
    [Show full text]