geoz 89 April 2014

NEWSBREAKERS

Putnisite: a new mineral from Western Australia

A new mineral, formally named Putnisite, was found in a surface outcrop at Lake Cowan, north of Norseman in Western Australia. It forms small isolated pseudocubic crystals up to 0.5 mm in size. It is translucent, with a pink streak and vitreous lustre; it has one excellent and two good cleavages and a Mohs hardness of 1.5-2.
Mindat.org website: http://bit.ly/1hJDZzm
News report: http://bit.ly/QzxyET
Research abstract: http://bit.ly/1ihblqP

Canning stock route project radio carbon dates a real result

A large-scale project to directly-date both charcoal and inorganic-pigmented pictographs along the Canning stock route using plasma oxidation combined with accelerator mass spectrometry has yielded some impressive results. The new technique has produced radio carbon dates for paint fragments as small as 10 micrograms in width and has yielded the largest number of art dates from any region in the world with thirty-six radiocarbon age determinations that range from 3000 years ago to Modern.
News report: http://bit.ly/QzSo6X
Research abstract: http://bit.ly/1jEqi1p

Sentinel has started work

The new Sentinel-1a radar satellite launched by The European Union is working well and has returned its first images of Earth. Sentinel was launched this month and is one of many orbiting sensors to be launched in coming years that will monitor the state of the planet. The radar maps will be used in urban planning, mapping natural disasters, and for monitoring remote locations.
http://bbc.in/1jQOqPF

FROM THE DIVISIONS

Divisional information is regularly updated at http://gsa.junctionworld.com/events/divisionmeetings.html
Check this site for more recent information on the following events:

Australian Capital Territory

Regular meetings 2014: Third Tuesday of each month (Except January)
Jaeger Lecture Theatre, Jaeger Building (Building 61), Australian National University. 5.00pm for 5.30pm start.
For more information: emma.mathews@ga.gov.au

Tuesday 20th May 2014
Laurie Hutton, President Geological Society of Australia
Linking mineral systems with geodynamics and tectonics at Mount Isa - a whole of geology model to the establishment of a geological history
Jaeger Lecture Theatre, Jaeger Building (Building 61), ANU. 5.00 pm for 5.30 pm

New South Wales

Thursday 22nd May 2014
Laurie Hutton, President Geological Society of Australia
Title TBA
Venue details TBA

Ten scholarships of $500 are available for NSW students who wish to attend the AESC
   •  The applicant must be currently enrolled as a student at any university
      (or other educational institution) in NSW.
   •  Preference will be given to applicants presenting either a poster or oral presentation (or both)
      at the convention. However, students who are not presenting may also apply
      but must be currently enrolled in an earth science related degree.
   •  If the applicant is already receiving financial assistance to attend the convention
      they won't be able to apply for the scholarship.
   •  The applicant should be a member of the GSA.
   •  Applications close May 14.
To find out more click here

Queensland

2014 meeting dates to be advised
For more information: info@qld.gsa.org.au

Tuesday 20th May 2014 - GSAQ AGM and May seminar
Dr Aldo van Heeswijck
MOHГOЛ TΘCΘЛ - BLUE SKY EXPLORATION
The Theodore Club, Level 1, 333 Adelaide St, Brisbane. 5.15 pm for 6.00 pm

South Australia

Thursday 22nd May 2014
Dr. Simon Holford, Australian School of Petroleum
The origin of the Ceduna sub-basin, Great Australian Bight
Mawson Theatre, University of Adelaide. 5.30 pm for 6.15 pm

GeoNight at the Pub: First Thursday of each month (starting 6th February)
The Griffins Head, Hindmarsh Square, Grenfell Street, Adelaide (Front Bar), 5.00pm to 7.30pm
For more information: anna_petts@yahoo.com.au

Tasmania

Thursday 8th May 2014
Laurie Hutton, President Geological Society of Australia
Title TBA
Main Lecture Theatre School of Earth Sciences University of Tasmania. 6.00 pm

Victoria

Thursday 29th May 2014
Dr Twycross
The pioneering work in seismography of John Milne
Mueller Hall, Royal Botanical Gardens, 7 pm followed at 8pm by a Night Sky Tour
Please note that numbers are limited to 30. For details of how to register please read the Division newsletter.

Western Australia

Wednesday 7th May 2014
Dr Mark Jessell, Winthrop Professor, Centre for Exploration Targeting, UWA
Title of talk TBA
Irish Club of WA (Inc), 61 Townshend Rd, Subiaco, 5.30 pm for 6.00 pm

GSA EVENTS

GSA Council Elections

In July 2014, the Governing Council will be implemented. The process of electing the new Governing Council of GSA is now in progress. Congratulations to the recently elected Division Councillors; Roger Bateman, WA Division; Michelle Cooper, ACT Division and Christine Edgoose, NT Division.

Call for General Councillors

The Executive is now calling for nominations for the five positions of General Councillor to complete the inaugural nine person Council. As advised in numerous communications, the Governing Council will combine the authority of the current Executive and the biennial Council meeting. The five General Councillors will be determined by a ballot of all members and the new Council will be endorsed on 8th July 2014, at the 2014 AGM of the Society, to be held in association with the AESC in Newcastle.

The Nomination process: Nominations are open to almost all membership categories (click here for full details), subject to endorsement by two Full or Retired Members. They close on 21st May, 2014, and ballot papers will be mailed to all Members by 31st May with voting to close by 30th June. The General Councillor Nomination form is available here.

Your Nomination should include:
A summary of qualifications to serve as a Councillor (maximum of 400 words) which includes:
   a.  Academic, professional and community qualifications and recognition;
   b.  Relevant work and board/committee experience;
   c.  Portrait image of yourself (optional)
   d.  Contributions to GSA and
   e.  Key issues that you believe that GSA needs to address.

It should be forwarded to: info@gsa.org.au by no later than 21st May, 2014.

Additional Information:
The new governance model has been developed to strengthen the strategic decision making and development of the GSA, and to revitalise an organisation that has hardly grown its membership during the recent period of increased interest and enrolments in geoscience. It will meet quarterly by teleconference with one face to face meeting each year. Substantial authority will be delegated to the CEO and a smaller Executive, drawn from within Council, to ensure prompt response to opportunities and issues. The President will be appointed from the elected Council.

Membership of the new Council will be a significant, national, professional responsibility, and an exciting opportunity for any Member committed to our profession, its standing and its growth. An ideal Council will include a mix of attributes such as: vision and a national perspective; energy and enthusiasm; wisdom; business acumen and management experience; experience in GSA committees; and recognition within the profession. We are starting an exciting new chapter in the evolution of GSA and here is your opportunity to shape the future of the Society.

If you have any queries about the nomination process, or what may be involved in becoming a Councillor, please contact sue@gsa.org.au or one of the Governance committee members: Jim Ross, Chris Yeats, Laurie Hutton laurie.hutton@dnrm.qld.gov.au or Ian Graham i.graham@unsw.edu.au

The Australian Earth Sciences Convention 2014
Field trips and workshops registration deadline is close!

The deadline is fast approaching to register for AESC field trips and workshops. The Blue Mountains World Heritage Area/Jenolan Geotourism booking deadline is Friday, 2 May. The deadline for all the other field trips and workshops is Friday, 30 May. See http://www.aesc2014.gsa.org.au/workshops-and-field-trips/ for details.

Newcastle accommodation filling up! There is another event on in Newcastle during the AESC which means accommodation will be extremely hard to come by. The Secretariat has block bookings in place at a number of hotels. However, all unsold rooms must be released back to the hotels 30 days prior to the convention. We highly recommend you book your accommodation sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment.

The convention themes are:
  •  Energy
  •  Resources
  •  Environment
  •  Infrastructure, Service and Community
  •  Dynamic Planet
  •  Living Planet.

Dedicated symposia include:
• 39th Symposium on the Advances in the Study of the Sydney Basin
• Comparisons & Contrasts in Circum-Pacific Orogens

Please distribute information about the AESC 2014 to your colleagues within the geoscience community.
Australian Earth Sciences Convention
AESC 2014: Sustainable Australia
7-10 July 2014
Newcastle NSW

Registration updates

• GSNZ members receive GSA member rates to the AESC.

The organising committee looks forward to welcoming you in Newcastle and if you want any information about the AESC do not hesitate to contact the GSA office: info@gsa.org.au.

GSA membership

Have you renewed your GSA membership for 2014? Members can update their details or renew their membership online. Need help? Don't know your membership number, not sure if you have renewed? If in doubt, please contact the GSA office: info@gsa.org.au.

IN THE NEWS

PETM halted by bacteria?

New research suggests bacteria locked up sufficient carbon to halt a period of extreme warmth during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Marine barite accumulation rates show distinct peaks during this time interval, suggesting a general increase in export productivity - from the photic zone to depth with higher seawater temperatures at the time increasing bacterial activity.
Research abstract: http://bit.ly/1jDWYbv

Creep tears house in half

A creeping landslide in northwest Wyoming USA slowly ripped a house in two recently and forced workers to abandon efforts to stabilise the hillside. The slow destruction of the house accelerated when ground movement changed from 25mm per day to 300mm per day.
http://bit.ly/1rneqoA

ON THE WEB

Sentinel for asteroids boosted by Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization data

The B612 Foundation, a group that aims to launch a Sentinel Space Telescope Mission to monitor for incoming potential asteroid impacts, has used Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization data to suggest that Earth is hit by a multi-megaton asteroid about every 100 years. The foundation says this data supports the urgent need for such a monitoring system.
News report: http://bbc.in/1f2vNLz
B612 Foundation press release

The loess is loose

A wall of dust crossed northern China recently, driven by a spring storm moving east across Asia. Visibility dropped to less than 50 metres and the entire region was enveloped in a yellow haze. The image was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) from NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites.

Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC

News report: http://bit.ly/1iaHfnW
NASA report: http://1.usa.gov/1lGRhR1

IN THE MEDIA

Fossil embryos found in China

Fossilised animal embryos from the lower Cambrian rocks of Hubei Province, South China, provide researchers with some remarkable insights into the developmental biology of early animals.
News report: http://bit.ly/1lHdgHx
Research abstract: http://bit.ly/1l4LwK0

New guide to Royal National Park

The Linnean Society of NSW has just published an up-to-date and comprehensive 176 page guide to the natural history of the Royal National Park: its geology and geomorphology; plants and vegetation; mammals, birds, frogs and reptiles; insects, spiders and non-marine molluscs. It is profusely illustrated in colour and excellent value for money.
http://bit.ly/1tEuw12

Mars: The field trip continued

Mount Remarkable butte and surrounding outcrops at the Kimberley waypoint. The butte stands about 5 metres high. The plan is to drive Curiosity to the flatter outcrop at the base of Mount Remarkable for a close-up inspection that might include drilling into the rock.

http://1.usa.gov/1hqCktZ

Image courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech

Stereo view of tracks at the Kimberley
http://1.usa.gov/1ih7jZy

Pretty blue and going for gold
http://bit.ly/1f8MkgR

Will I drill this one?
http://1.usa.gov/1f8MB3c

More news from the solar system ...

A new moon for Saturn born?
http://bbc.in/1ipWXLt

A new dwarf planet?
http://bbc.in/1dsiVxj

A ring around an asteroid
http://bit.ly/1g1ymHv

... and elsewhere ...

First exo-moon found?
http://ab.co/1nHSowE

Kepler 186f - Earth II?
http://bbc.in/1eOPdne

What's in AJES

The Australian Journal of Earth Sciences online is available through the Taylor & Francis website. It is very easy to navigate and use.

AJES is available to financial members of the GSA. Don't miss the next issue because your membership has lapsed!

Activate your 2014 on-line access
To activate your 2014 online access to the Australian Journal of Earth Sciences please click on the following link: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/customerActivation
You will be taken to the Taylor & Francis Online platform and invited to "Sign In".

STEP ONE: Your Taylor & Francis Online account

a) If you already have a Taylor & Francis Online account you will be required to "Sign in". If you have forgotten your password, please click on 'Forgot password' enter your email address and you will be sent an email containing a link to create a new password. Please check your spam folder if it does not arrive.

OR:

b) If you do not already have an account on Taylor & Francis Online, please click "Register" at the top of the page and follow the prompts. Note: Once you have submitted your registration form, a confirmation email will be sent to the email address that you registered and this email will contain a validation link to activate your account. Unfortunately these emails can be caught in spam filters; please check this and add @tandfonline.com to your safe senders list.

STEP TWO: Activating your AJES access

When you have registered/signed in, the following prompts appear and these actions are required:
   •  Society drop down menu = please select Geological Society of Australia
   •  Membership number, please enter your GSA membership number
   •  Activation code, please enter the code recently sent by email. If you did not receive this email contact info@gsa.org.au for advice but please check your spam filter first.

To access the AJES please click on "My Account" at the top of the page near your name and then click the blue "Access" button and choose Australian Journal of Earth Sciences. Once you activate this Access, please ignore if an error message arises (as your access will be active - please ignore error message and proceed to My Account) - or if still not available please contact Taylor & Francis at: enquiries@tandf.com.au

Volume 61 No.1 - published on-line and in hard copy

Using Research to Benefit Mineral Exploration: Examples of Recent Research Conducted at the Centre of Exploration Targeting (CET)
Hagemann, Witt & Fiorentini eds.

R. R. Loucks
Distinctive composition of copper-ore-forming arc magmas.

W. K. Witt, S. G. Hagemann & C. Villanes
Geochemistry and geology of spatially and temporally associated calc-alkaline (I-type) and K-rich (A-type) magmatism in a Carboniferous continental arc setting, Pataz gold mining district, northern Peru.

W. K. Witt, S. G. Hagemann, J. Ojala, C. Laukamp, T. Vennemann, Villanes, C. & V. Nykanen
Multiple methods for regional- to mine-scale targeting, Pataz gold field, northern Peru.

C. Nyakecho & S. G. Hagemann
An Overview of Gold Systems in Uganda.

L. Bagas, R. Boucher, B. Li, J. Miller, P. Hill, G. Depauw, J. Pascoe & B. Eggers
Paleoproterozoic stratigraphy and gold mineralisation in the Granites-Tanami Orogen, North Australian Craton.

S. J. Nichols & S. G. Hagemann
Structural and hydrothermal alteration evidence for early and late stages of gold mineralisation at the New Celebration Gold deposit in Western Australia.

S. S. Romano, N. J. M. Thébaud, D. R. Mole, M. T. D. Wingate, C. L. Kirkland & M. P. Doublier
Age constraints on komatiites in the Southern Cross Domain, Yilgarn Craton.

J. Martindale, S. Hagemann, D. Huston & L. Danyushevsky
Integrated stratigraphic-structural-hydrothermal alteration and mineralisation model for the Kangaroo Caves zinc-copper deposit, Western Australia.

A. S. D. Maskell, P. Duuring & S. G. Hagemann
Hydrothermal alteration events controlling magnetite-rich iron ore at the Matthew Ridge prospect, Jack Hills greenstone belt, Yilgarn Craton.

Volume 61 No.2 - all papers published on-line

M. Rexer & C. Hirt
Comparison of free high resolution digital elevation data sets (ASTER GDEM2, SRTM v2.1/v4.1) and validation against accurate heights from the Australian National Gravity Database

R. H. Vernon
Microstructures of microgranitoid enclaves and the origin of S-type granitoids

F. L. Sutherland, I. T. Graham, J. D. Hollis, S. Meffre, H. Zwingmann, F. Jourdan & R. E. Pogson
Multiple felsic events within post-10 Ma volcanism, Southeast Australia: inputs in appraising proposed magmatic models

Stephen J. Barnes, L. A. Fisher, R. Anand & T. Uemoto
Mapping bedrock lithologies through in situ regolith using retained element ratios: a case study from the Agnew-Lawlers area, Western Australia

M. J. Cracknell, A. M. Reading & A. W. McNeill
Mapping geology and volcanic-hosted massive sulfide alteration in the Hellyer-Mt Charter region, Tasmania, using Random Forests™ and Self-Organising Maps.

A. S. A. A. Abu Sharib
Switching bulk horizontal shortening and regional-scale partitioning of deformation during the Isan Orogeny in the Eastern Fold Belt, Mount Isa Inlier, Australia.

M. A. Short, S. Lamontagne, P. G. Cook & R. Cranswick
Characterising the distribution of near-shore submarine groundwater discharge along a coastline using ²²²Rn and electrical conductivity

Other papers published on-line recently

Follow this link to see the most recent papers published on-line.

D. I. Cendón, S. I. Hankin, J. P. Williams, M. Van der ley, M. Peterson, C. E. Hughes, K. Meredith, I. T. Graham, S. E. Hollins, V. Levchenko & R. Chisari
Groundwater residence time in a dissected and weathered sandstone plateau: Kulnura-Mangrove Mountain aquifer, NSW, Australia

P. G. Lennox, M. A. Forster & I. S. Williams
Emplacement and deformation ages of the Wyangala Granite, Cowra, NSW

M. M. Ma, X. M. Liu, B. J. Pillans, P. Y. Li, B. Lu & S. Y. Hu
Magnetic properties and particle-size analysis of dust-storm samples collected in Lanzhou and Sydney

Coming up in TAG

TAG for June 2014

The June issue is in production. The September issue deadline is 25 July. Have you got something to say in 2014? Get your Letter to the Editor or a news item published in TAG by sending it to: tag@gsa.org.au. If you are submitting a Feature or Special Report please send your article in as soon as possible. Need information about word lengths and submitting? Contact: tag@gsa.org.au

JOB VACANCIES

Advertising space now available

Advertising positions are now available in Geoz. Be the first to advertise here.
Word length: 40-50 words (the shorter the more effective) plus link to a web site.
Text and a small logo linking to your online advert or business.
Logo a maximum of 180 pixels wide x 90 pixels high.
Adverts will run in Geoz for two issues.
Fee: $150.00
For more information: info@gsa.org.au

WHAT'S ON

DEADLINES:

The Australian Museum Eureka Prizes - applications close 7pm AEST Friday 2 May 2014

The prizes reward excellence in the fields of research & innovation, leadership & commercialisation, school science and science journalism & communication.

http://bit.ly/1fMCYF3

Exploration in the House & NSW Minerals Council Exploration Forum - Register by 12 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1p5ninf.

Call for Papers - Abstract deadline June 30 2014

Bowen Basin Symposium 7-10 October, 2015

Bowen Basin and Beyond
Click here for flyer

Geoscience Australia's 2014 Top GeoShot photographic competition - entries close 12 September 2014

Winners receive a professionally framed enlargement of their image and their image will be displayed in Geoscience Australia's foyer in Canberra for the year.

http://bit.ly/1gVh0ws

EVENTS:

RIU Sydney Resources Roundup, Sydney, 13 - 15 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1dcb1IF.

Best Practices in Mine Backfill Technologies Workshop, Perth, 19 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1p9H7o3.

Exploration in the House 2014, Sydney, 20 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1p5ninf.

NSW Minerals Council Exploration Forum 2014, Sydney, 21 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1p5ninf.

11th International Symposium on Mining with Backfill, Perth, 20 - 22 May 2014

http://bit.ly/1p9H7o3.