First International Conference on Mars Sedimentology and Stratigraphy  April 19-21, 2010  El Paso, Texas

FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT — MARCH 2010

 

 

Sponsors
California Institute of Technology
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Lunar and Planetary Institute
Mars Exploration Program
National Aeronautics and
   Space Administration
Society for Sedimentary Geology

Conveners
John Grotzinger,
   California Institute of Technology
David Beaty,
   Mars Program Office,
   Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Scientific Organizing Committee
Gilles Dromart,
   Lyon, France
John Grant,
   Smithsonian Institution
Sanjeev Gupta,
   Imperial College London
Mitch Harris
   Chevron
Gary Kocurek,
   University of Texas
Scott McLennan,
   SUNY Stony Brook
Ralph Milliken,
   Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Gian Gabrielle Ori,
   IRPS, Italy
Dawn Sumner,
   University of California, Davis

 


 

 
   
 

MEETING LOCATION AND DATE

   
 
   
    The First International Conference on Mars Sedimentology and Stratigraphy will be held April 19–21, 2010, in El Paso, Texas. It will be followed by a two-day field trip to Carlsbad, New Mexico.
 

KEY POINTS:
  When:  April 19–21, 2010
  Where:  El Paso, Texas

 
   
  PURPOSE AND SCOPE    
 
   
   

Mars has preserved sedimentary rocks that record the evolution of its early surface environments. The oldest sedimentary rocks likely exceed 4 billion years and significantly predate the stabilization of the Archean cratons on Earth, which preserve the oldest sedimentary rocks on Earth. Thus, the martian sedimentary record may provide a unique opportunity to study the early environmental evolution of a terrestrial planet. It is during this key time interval that prebiotic chemistry and the origin of life appear to have taken place on Earth. The absence of well-preserved terrestrial sedimentary rocks are a significant barrier to investigating the earliest tectonic, climatic, and biologic processes, and are a powerful motivation for studying such rocks on Mars.

This conference seeks to stimulate the exchange of ideas among the community of scientists with common interests in sedimentary processes and the stratigraphic record of sedimentary rocks on Mars. Topical sessions will include weathering processes, provenance, and diagenesis of sediments; transport and depositional processes (fluvial, eolian, lacustrine, evaporitic, volcaniclastic, and impact), both past and present; characterization and origin of vast exposures of layered bedrock; controls on stratigraphic stacking patterns and stratal geometry; and the evolution of sedimentary basins, including patterns of deformation.

   
 
   
  CONFERENCE FORMAT    
 
   
   

Technical sessions comprise invited and contributed talks and posters in a setting that will include adequate time for questions and discussion.

A registration reception will be held Sunday evening, April 18, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. Oral sessions will begin on Monday, April 19, and continue through mid-day on Wednesday, April 21. There will be a poster reception Monday evening, April 19, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Oral presentations –
All electronic presentations must follow conference guidelines as detailed in the instructions for electronic presentations.

Poster presentations –
Each poster display space is 44” x 44”. Posters should be designed to attach to the panel with push pins, which will be provided. The poster session will be held Monday evening, 6:00–9:00 p.m. To ensure that everyone has an opportunity to view posters during the session, the presentations have been split into two 1.5-hour sessions. First author last names A–L will present posters from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. First author last names M–Z will present posters from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.

Posters may be viewed during the day, as well as during the evening session. Presenters are encouraged to install their posters Monday morning. Posters must be removed Wednesday morning by 10:00 a.m.

The detailed program with abstracts is now available. Presenters should check the author index to see when their presentation has been scheduled.

   
 
   
  FIELD TRIP    
 
   
   

After the meeting concludes mid-day on Wednesday, April 21, field trip participants will leave El Paso for Carlsbad, New Mexico, via bus. The field trip will focus on the sedimentary rocks that have filled the western part of the Permian Basin. The group will stay in Carlsbad for the nights of April 21 and 22.

What we will see:
The Guadalupe and Delaware Mountain outcrops located 2.5 hrs east of El Paso represent one of the world’s best-exposed and best-studied basin-fill successions. A remarkable spectrum of shallow and deep-water evaporites, eolian, shallow shelf and basinal sandstones, and shelf, slope, and basinal carbonate strata can be found in near-original depositional setting. These strata are both mineralogically diverse and exhibit a remarkable range of physical stratal geometries and stacking patterns. The 1700-m local relief produced by the Basin-and-Range age normal fault system is on par with that observed in the Grand Canyon, making it possible to observe in one vantage point the entire shelf to basin Permian paleobathymetry.

These outcrops present very useful partial analogs for what might be present in the sedimentary rock record of Mars. Many of the martian sedimentary rocks also fill large basins, and are either observed or are presumed to show systematic variations from basin margin to basin interior as well as from oldest to youngest unit. Both systems show a mixture of sulfate and phyllosilicate minerals, along with other sedimentary components. Part of the value of exploring this analog in the field is that there are key general lessons to be learned about how sedimentary strata in general are formed, and what techniques and approaches are used by terrestrial geologists to study them; how, for example, paleobathymetry could be reconstructed based on observation of specific types of stratal geometries. Indeed, the rocks that will be seen on this field trip are possibly the most visited on Earth for the purpose of education, so participants with less experience in sedimentology and stratigraphy will find the stops to be very instructive.

Stops on the field trip will be designed to highlight

  • Tectonic setting and overview of the shelf-to-basin profile of the Permian Basin (Salt Flat Graben floor)
  • Style and occurrence of basinal sulfates (anhydrite) of the Castile Formation sitting in an estimated 600–700 m of paleo-water depth (Castile escarpment on Permian Basin floor)
  • Mixed carbonate-evaporite-siliciclastic mudstone facies transitions of the restricted shelf, and their recognition through remote sensing using AVIRIS data (Rocky Arroyo transect)
  • Stratal geometries of a mixed siliciclastic-carbonate prograding shelf deposit with well-exposed clinoforms (Last Chance Canyon)
  • Basinal sandstone turbidite slope channels of the Brushy Canyon Formation (Guadalupe Canyon)
  • A stop at the world-famous Carlsbad Caverns to examine the geologic processes associated with cave formation in this environment

Departure from Doubletree Hotel:   Wednesday, April 21, noon.
Return to El Paso International Airport:   Friday, April 23, by 3:00 p.m. (don’t make departure flight reservations for earlier than 4:30 p.m.)
Cost:   $550.00 (cost includes hotel stay in Carlsbad, transportation, and all meals)
Special Note:   Non-U.S. citizens will need to bring passports, because we need to pass through a border-related checkpoint.

Participation is capped at 80 people. We expect this trip to be full and encourage early registration.

   
 
   
  SPECIAL PUBLICATION    
 
   
    The conference proceedings and other papers related to subject will be considered for inclusion in a special publication of SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology). This society has played a major role in shaping the directions of terrestrial sedimentary geology and now welcomes expansion into the field of planetary sedimentary geology. Approval has been obtained for publication of a select number of papers as a bound volume, to be edited by J. Grotzinger and R. Milliken. If interested, please submit a potential title and brief description of the potential contribution to J. Grotzinger. All contributions are encouraged, but special emphasis will be placed on those papers that focus on sedimentologic and stratigraphic processes at any scale, the geochemistry and mineralogy of martian sedimentary rocks at any scale, case histories of particular regions or basins, and synthetic papers that attempt to integrate broader scale concepts.

   
   
   
    REGISTRATION    
   
   
     
Through March 18, 2010 $300.00 professionals / $225.00 students
March 19–April 9, 2010 $325.00 professionals / $250.00 students
April 18–21, 2010

Onsite registration ONLY
$350.00 professionals / $275.00 students

Credit card registrations:  Participants registering by credit card must use the secure electronic registration form.

Other methods of payment:  Those registering using any method of payment (check, money order, or traveler’s checks) must use the downloadable registration form.

Cancellations:  Requests for cancellation with a fee refund (less a $25.00 processing fee) will only be accepted through April 2, 2010. Those who fail to attend and do not notify the LPI prior to the April 2 deadline will forfeit their full fees.

 

KEY POINTS:
Registration Deadlines —
Reduced rate:
   March 18
Preregistration:
   March 19–April 9

   
   
    ACCOMMODATIONS    
   
   
     

The Doubletree Hotel El Paso Downtown/City Center is holding a block of rooms at a special rate of $92.00, plus tax, single or double occupancy. The hotel is located at 600 N. El Paso Street, El Paso, Texas, just six miles from the El Paso International Airport.

To ensure a room at the special rate, reservations MUST be made by March 16, 2010. Participants are encouraged to make their reservations early.

Room Reservations –
Reservations may be made by one of the following ways:

The Doubletree Hotel El Paso Downtown/City Center Online Reservations
Upon submission of the requested dates, enter the group/convention code:  SRA. The next page will indicate the special rate of $92.00.

Doubletree telephone reservations at 1-800-445-8667.
Specify “Universities Space Research Association” and group code:  SRA.

Reservations must be guaranteed with a major credit card. All reserved guest rooms are guaranteed until 6:00 p.m. on the day of arrival. Guests planning to arrive after 6:00 p.m. should notify the hotel at the time the room is booked. If travel plans should change due to delayed flights or other circumstances, guests should contact the hotel directly at 915-532-8733.

Cancellation Policy –
If you wish to cancel your reservation, you will need to do so at least 24 hours before scheduled arrival to avoid cancellation penalties.

* Special Note:
If anyone attending the field trip needs to make a room reservation at the Doubletree Hotel for the night of Friday, April 23, please contact Kimberly Taylor to arrange to receive the group rate for that night.

   
   
   
    TRANSPORTATION    
   
   
      El Paso is served by the El Paso International Airport (ELP), about six miles from the Doubletree Hotel. The hotel provides complimentary shuttle service from the airport. A courtesy hotel phone bank is located directly in front of the baggage claim area. Guests will be able to arrange transportation on site from the airport to the Doubletree Hotel. Please see the airport shuttle website for further information.

   
   
   
    CONTACTS    
   
   
     

For further information regarding the scientific objectives and field trip, contact

John Grotzinger
California Institute of Technology
phone:  626-395-6785
e-mail:  [email protected]

David Beaty
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
phone:  818-354-7968
e-mail:  [email protected]

For further information regarding conference logistics and announcements, contact

Kimberly Taylor
Lunar and Planetary Institute
phone:  281-486-2151
e-mail:  [email protected]

For further information regarding registration, contact

Linda Tanner
Lunar and Planetary Institute
phone:  281-486-2142
e-mail: [email protected]


   
   
   
   
SCHEDULE
   
   
   
     
March 16, 2010
Deadline for hotel reservations at group rate
March 18, 2010
Deadline for preregistration at reduced rate
April 19–21, 2010

International Field Workshop on Mars Sedimentology
and Stratigraphy
in El Paso, Texas

April 21–23, 2010

Field trip to Carlsbad, New Mexico

   
   
   
           

 


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