Geoscience Research Group
- Welcome
- Activities
- Aims and objectives
- Research interests
- Student Projects
- Available projects
- Past Honours projects
- Past post-graduate (Masters, PhD) projects
- Professional associations
- Contact Us
- Members
- Various publications
Welcome
Unearth your potential and discover the world!
Planet Earth is a dynamic place. Geological processes, driven by the internal heat of Earth and energy from the sun, mould
vast mountain ranges and deep ocean basins, which are constantly being
carved up by the erosive action of water and air. The Earth system is
composed of numerous, interacting sub-systems such as rivers, beaches,
oceans, soils, biosphere, volcanoes and faults that result in a
continually changing surface expression. The diversity of landforms makes Earth an interesting place to live and has allowed life itself to flourish.
By enrolling in a Geoscience major (Bachelor of Science) or a
post-graduate program (Masters, PhD) you will learn about and
investigate geological processes that are fundamental to our understanding of the ground beneath our feet.
A Geoscience major will give you a broad knowledge in the fields of environmental geology, natural hazards (eg. earthquakes,
tsunamis, volcanoes, floods, drought, climate change, el nino), coastal and fluvial processes, plate tectonics, mountain building, earth resources, mining and rehabilitation, palaeontology, sedimentology, igneous and metamorphic processes, mineralogy, geochemistry, structural geology and field mapping.
Geoscientists are responsible for reading and interpreting Earth’s history in order to manage it’s future. It is a multi-disciplinary field, drawing on all aspects of science. You will be involved in a number of fieldtrips in order to map and get first hand experience of different geological
environments and you will be using the latest technologies, such as
geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing and geographic
positioning systems (GPS) to map and interpret our physical environment.
Summary of activities as at 2003
The major activities of the Geoscience Research Group are in the fields of petroleum geology, Cambrian and Tertiary palaeontology, geomorphology and geomorphometry, Quaternary geology, sedimentology and economic geology.
- The group is an integral part of the National Centre for Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (NCPGG). The NCPGG, which is based at the Thebarton Campus of Adelaide University.
- The group is a member of the federally funded Australian Petroleum Cooperative Research Centre (APCRC).
The major projects undertaken recently in petroleum geology were:
- porosity and permeability studies of both reservoirs and seal rocks.
- a PhD project on the structural evolution of the Barrow Sub-Basin, North West Shelf.
- the influence of deep seated structure of hydrocarbon accumulations in the Cooper and Eromanga Basins.
- reservoir analysis and source rock potential of Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous sequences, Dampier Sub-Basin, North West Shelf.
- Cretaceous to Recent structural and stratigraphic evolution of the Barrow Province, North-West Shelf.
- Studies continued on the sedimentology and mineralisation of the Kanmantoo Group on Fleurieu Peninsula and the Mt. Lofty Ranges.
- The Cambrian faunas of Tasmania, Antarctica and South Australia continue to be studied.
In the last year more attention has been paid to the study of slope stability problems and the geology of the last 2 million years and in particular, the last 100,000 years. Detailed geomorphometric analysis was undertaken of the newer volcanics of south-eastern Australia.
Fifteen papers/abstracts were either published or accepted for publication in 2000.
Aims and objectives
The aims and objectives of this group are:
- to make petroleum exploration and extraction more cost-effective by increasing our understanding of the characteristics of both reservoir and seal rocks
- to investigate and evaluation mineral deposits, mineralising processes and ore associations for the better understanding of ore genesis and advancement of mineral exploration techniques
- to carry out research in geomorphology and geomorphometry
- to increase the knowledge of Cambrian and Tertiary biostratigraphy
- to investigate geological events of the last 2 million years and to use this biodata to predict the future
Research interests
- Neotectonic landscapes of South Australia
- Geochemical investigations of acid rock drainage
- Tectonic evolution of ancient orogenic belts (Delamerian Orogeny, South Australia; New England and Lachlan orgens, eastern Australia)
- Tasmanian Cambrian Biostratigraphy
- Cambrian Faunas of Northern Victoria Land, Antarctica
- Stratigraphy and Sedimentology of the Kanmantoo Group, Mount Lofty Ranges.
- Biostratigraphy and sedimentology of the Cambrian of South Australia.
Professional associations
- Geological Society of Australia
- Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy
- Australasian Association of Palaeontologists
- Palaeontological Association (U.K.)
- Royal Society of Tasmania
- Royal Society of South Australia
- Petroleum Exploration Society of Australia
Contact the group
Associate Professor Jim Jago - Group Leader / Co-ordinator
Dr Solomon Buckman - Lecturer/Researcher geoscience, tectonics, environmental geochemistry
Dr Robert Wiltshire
Dr Ian Clarke
Dr Mark Bishop
Prof. John Cann