Welcome to Adobe GoLive 6

Welcome to:

Yvette Kuiper's Web Site.

Click on the links below for my Courses and the Mineral Separation Lab

Research

structural geology - geochronology - tectonics - field geology

Archaean geology of southwest Greenland

Archaean terrains are important areas for geological research, because they allow us to study early earth processes. Because the temperature and composition of the rocks were different from what they are today, Archaean plate tectonics may have been significantly different from modern plate tectonics. The mechanism, and even the existence, of Archaean plate tectonics is currently a highly debated topic. An excellent exposure of part of the Archean Nain craton exists in the Nuuk area of southern West Greenland. It is composed of at least six Archaean terranes. All terranes have different ages, compositions and early histories. The geological histories of various terranes and subterranes, and the nature of the terrane boundaries and timing of their formation, are studied in order to obtain a better understanding of Archaean crust forming processes in the context of plate tectonic theory. The current research area is the relatively unexplored southeastern Nuuk region. The regional extent of certain terranes and location of terrane boundaries is uncertain, and the tectonic history of the area is largely unknown. Research involves detailed mapping of relevant parts of the southeastern Nuuk region combined with (micro)structural analysis and U-Pb geochronology in order to identify the terranes and their boundaries, and to reveal the tectonic history of the area. Field work is conducted during the summer months in collaboration with the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS). Geochronology is performed at GEUS and MIT.

Purgatory conglomerate in Rhode Island

The Purgatory conglomerate in Rhode Island is deformed by a process called pressure solution. Clasts are flattened on their high-pressure sites and material is deposited in 'tails' along the low-pressure sites. Some seem to be asymmetric 'sigma clasts', indicating shear movement. This study focuses on the relationship of the orientation of the clasts with respect to the regional strain (folding and shearing) and on the internal morphology of the tails. The project involves field sampling and mapping, imaging and analyses (backscatter electron, cathodoluminescence and electron backscatter diffraction; in collaboration with the University of Waterloo) and possibly numerical modeling to model the orientations of the clasts with increasing strain.

Geology of the New England Appalachians

The Appalachians are a collage of collided terranes and volcanic arcs. The origins and accretion histories of some of the terranes are poorly known.In our department we attempt to unravel part of the complexities of the Appalachians by a combination of mapping, structural geology, petrology, geochemistry and geochronology. For example, in eastern Massachusetts we study the accretion histories of the Nashoba and Avalon terranes. Topics of particular interest are the kinematics and timing of the mylonite zones. Some of the mylonite zones are terrane boundaries, but some occur within the terranes. The kinematics of the individual mylonite zones is being investigated. Various U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology methods are being used to constrain the timing of the deformation. Geochronology is carried out at MIT and Umass Amherst.

The northern Superior Province boundary zone, Manitoba, Canada

The northern Superior Province Boundary Zone separates the Archaean Superior Province to the southeast from the Paleoproterozoic Trans-Hudson Orogen to the northwest. The Superior Province Boundary Zone comprises various geological domains bounded by various shear zones. Detailed mapping of the shear zones constrained the movement direction and sense along these shear zones, and the movement between the Superior Province and the Trans-Hudson Orogen. However, the question arose how exactly the movement between the Superior Province and the Trans-Hudson Orogen is accommodated by the various shear zones, and possibly the domains between the shear zones (strain partitioning). Another related more general question is how structures such as folds, foliations and lineations develop during various types of progressive deformation. Results from mathematical modeling are compared to results from the field. The questions above form part of the currently ongoing research. U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology methods are used to constrain the timing of deformation along the shear zones and older deformation within the domains. This is a challenge, because the samples have commonly experienced multiple deformation events. In addition to 'conventional' U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating of mineral separates, in situ U-Pb methods (Electron Microprobe Monazite Analysis; Sensitive High-Resolution Ion Microprobe) and in situ ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology are performed in order to solve these problems. In situ methods allow for dating of minerals in thin section, so that their structural and metamorphic context is known. Furthermore, various age domains within one mineral can be dated and various geological events can be separated. This type of research is not only interesting from a regional perspective, but also contributes towards fundamental knowledge. Because in situ U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology methods are currently still being developed and improved, using these methods can also contribute towards the knowledge of the possibilities and limitations of these methods. This project is in collaboration with the Manitoba Geological Survey, University of Waterloo, Geological Survey of Canada, Umass Amherst and the University of Toronto .

Monashee Complex, southeastern British Columbia, Canada

Due to multiple generations of deformation and metamorphism, related to the Cordilleran Orogeny and later crustal extension, the interpretation of U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dates in the Monashee Complex, an exposure of North American cratonic rocks within the southeastern Canadian Cordillera, is ambiguous. The dates may represent deformation and thermal peak of metamorphism associated with crustal shortening, or the end of a prolonged period of metamorphism, related to crustal extension and thermal relaxation. The regional significance of structures and metamorphism in the Monashee Complex is also a topic of debate. Structural, metamorphic and geochronological data of the Monashee Complex and surrounding areas fit in a crustal-scale channel flow model, but the idea still needs to be tested. We are also trying to determine the age of deposition and metamorphism of the cover sequence of the Monashee Complex. Constraining the age of the cover sequence is important, not only because it allows us to correlate the cover sequence of the Monashee Complex with other sediments in the Cordillera, but also because it gives indirect age constraints on ages of Cordilleran metamorphism and deformation as a result of terrane accretion to the west. Past and current collaborators are the University of New Brunswick, Carleton University, the Geological Survey of Canada, Umass Amherst and Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Publications

Journal articles

Kuiper, Y.D., 2008. The dry-erase cube: making three-dimensional visualization easy. Journal of Geoscience Education 56, 261-268. (pdf of AGU poster)

Kuiper, Y.D., Jiang, D., Lin, S., 2007. Relationship between non-cylindrical fold geometry and the shear direction in monoclinic and triclinic shear zones. Journal of Structural Geology 29, 1022-1033.

Kuiper, Y.D., Williams, P.F., Kruse, S., 2006. Possibility of channel flow in the southern Canadian Cordillera; a new approach to explain existing data. In: R.D. Law, M. Searle and L. Godin (eds). Channel Flow, Ductile Extrusion and Exhumation of Lower-mid Crust in Continental Collision Zones. Journal of the Geological Society of Londen, Special Publications 268, 587-609.

Kuiper, Y.D. 2005. Isotopic age constraints from electron microprobe U-Th-Pb dates, using a three-dimensional concordia diagram. American Mineralogist 90, 586-591.

Kuiper, Y.D., 2002. The interpretation of inverse isochron diagrams in ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 203, 499-506.

Reports

Kuiper, Y.D., Næraa, T., Wang, H., Rehnström, E.F., Schmith, J., 2007. Field Report, 64 V2 Syd, Kapisillit map sheet 1:100 000. Field report, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.

Bennett, V., Kuiper, Y.D., 2006 Field Report: Central Kapisillit Map Sheet (64V2 Syd) (UTM Zones 22NW and 22NE) and Akullersuaq Map Areas, (UTM Zone 22NE). Field report, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.

Rink Jørgensen, M., Kuiper, Y.D., Hollis, J.H., 2006. Field report - Kapisillit mapsheet, 2006. Field report, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.

Kuiper, Y.D., Böhm, C.O., Lin, S., 2005. Structural geology of the Mystery-Apussigamasi lakes area, Manitoba (parts of NTS 63P13 and 14). In: Report of Activities 2005, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 61-68.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2004. Structural geology of the Aiken River deformation zone, northern Manitoba (NTS 64A1, 2). In: Report of Activities 2004, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 201-208.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2004. Structural geology of Assean Lake, northern Manitoba (NTS 64A1, 2, 8). In: Report of Activities 2004, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 195-200.

Hartlaub, R.P., Böhm, C.O., Kuiper, Y.D., Bowerman, M.S., Heaman, L.M., 2004. Archean and Paleoproterozoic Geology of the northwestern Split Lake Block, Superior Province (NTS 64A1, 54D5, 6). In: Report of Activities 2004, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 187-194.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2003. Structural geology of the Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones, northern Manitoba (NTS 64A1, 2 and 8). In: Report of Activities 2003, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 105-113.

Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., Bowerman, M.S., Downey, M.W., Hartlaub, R.P., Kuiper, Y.D., Heaman, L.M., Lin, S., 2003. Superior margin programs in the lower Nelson River region, Manitoba (parts of NTS 54D and 64A): year one. In: Report of Activities 2003, Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, 86-91.

Maps

Kuiper, Y.D., 2005. Structural geology of the Mystery-Apussigamasi lakes area, Manitoba (parts of NTS 63P13 and 14). Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, PMAP2005-5, scale 1:35 000.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., 2004. Structural geology of the Aiken River deformation zone, Manitoba (parts of NTS 64A1 and 2). Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, PMAP2004-3, scale 1:50 000.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., 2004. Structural geology of the Aiken River deformation zone, York Landing area, Manitoba (parts of NTS 64A1). Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, PMAP2004-4, scale 1:20 000.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2004. Structural geology of Assean Lake, Manitoba (parts of NTS 64A1, 2 and 8). Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, PMAP2004-2, scale 1:25 000.

Hartlaub, R.P., Kuiper, Y.D., 2004. Geology of central and north Split Lake, Manitoba (parts of NTS 54D4, 5 and 64A1, 8). Manitoba Industry, Economic Development and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey, PMAP2004-1, scale 1:20 000.

Conference Abstracts

Böhm, C.O., Zwanzig, H.V., Kuiper, Y.D., 2008. Identification and analysis of ancient suture zones along the Superior craton margin, Manitoba. Geological Association of Canada and Mineralogical Association of Canada Annual Meeting (May 26–28, 2008), Quebec, Quebec, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., 2008. Indications for channel flow in the Omineca belt in southeastern British Columbia. Geological Society of America Northeastern Section Meeting, Buffalo, New York, USA, March 2008.

Shields, C. (undergraduate student), Kuiper, Y.D., 2008. New detrital and metamorphic zircon ages from cover rocks of the Monashee Complex, southeastern Canadian Cordillera. Geological Society of America Northeastern Section Meeting, Buffalo, New York, USA, March 2008.

Kuiper, Y.D. 2007. The dry-erase cube: an educational tool in structural geology for making three-dimensional visualization easy. Eos Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 88(52), Fall Meeting Supplements, Abstract ED31A-0090.

Kuiper, Y.D., Jiang, D., Lin, S., 2006. The usefulness of non-cylindrical (sheath) folds in monoclinic and triclinic shear zones. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, Vol. 38, No. 7, 19.

Kuiper, Y.D., Jiang, D., Lin, S., 2005. Sheath folds in triclinic shear. In: Schwerdtner, W.M., Canadian Tectonics Group 25th Annual Meeting (October 28-30, 2005), Orillia, Ontario, Canada, 26.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2004. Shear zones of the Superior Boundary Zone northeast of Thompson, Manitoba. In: Schwerdtner, W.M., Canadian Tectonics Group 25th Annual Meeting (October 28-30, 2005), Orillia, Ontario, Canada, 25.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., 2005. Movement on the Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones of the Superior Boundary Zone, northern Manitoba; structural geology, geochronology and some regional implications. Geological Association of Canada and Mineralogical Association of Canada Annual Meeting (May 16-18, 2005), Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2004. Kinematics of the Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones, Superior Boundary Zone, northern Manitoba. Manitoba Mining and Minerals Convention (November 18-20, 2004), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., 2004. Pure shear/simple shear partitioning along the Aiken River and Assean Lake deformation zones, Superior Boundary Zone, northern Manitoba. In: McNeill, P.D., Canadian Tectonics Group 24th Annual Meeting (October 22-24, 2004), Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., 2004. The Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones of the Superior Boundary Zone, northern Manitoba. Geological Association of Canada and Mineralogical Association of Canada Annual Meeting (May 12-14, 2004), St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2003. Structural geology of the Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones, northern Manitoba. Manitoba Mining and Minerals Convention (November 13-15, 2003), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Lin, S., Böhm, C.O., Corkery, M.T., 2003. Preliminary structural geology of the Assean Lake and Aiken River deformation zones, Superior Boundary Zone, northern Manitoba. In: Lin, S., Canadian Tectonics Group 23rd Annual Meeting (October 24-26, 2003), Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, 10.

Kuiper, Y.D., 2003. Isotopic age constraints from electron microprobe U-Th-Pb dates, using a three-dimensional concordia diagram. Geological Association of Canada Mineralogical Association of Canada and Society of Economic Geologists Annual Meeting (May 25-29, 2003), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Williams, P.F., 2003. Constraining deformation and metamorphism in Thor-Odin dome of the Monashee Complex, southeastern British Columbia; how some events may be preserved in the U-Pb record and others may not. Geological Association of Canada and Mineralogical Association of Canada Annual Meeting (May 25-29, 2003), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., 2003. U-Pb isotopic dating of multiple geological events; an example from the Monashee Complex, British Columbia. University of New Brunswick Graduate Student Association 11th Annual Conference on Student Research (February 14-15, 2003), University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, 11.

Kuiper, Y.D., Williams, P.F., 2003. Proterozoic migmatisation in a basement orthogneiss, and Late Cretaceous to Early Eocene monazite ages in cover rocks of Thor-Odin dome of the Monashee Complex, southeastern British Columbia; a SHRIMP and ID-TIMS study. Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (February 7-9, 2003), Carleton University, Ottawa, 18.

Kuiper, Y.D., 2002. When did deformation and peak of metamorphism take place in the Monashee Complex? In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (February 21-24, 2002), Pacific Geoscience Centre, Lithoprobe Report No. 82, 89-90.

Kuiper, Y.D., Kruse, S. Williams, P.F., McNeill, P.D., 2002. Possibility of channel flow in the southern Canadian Cordillera; a new approach to explain existing data. In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (February 21-24, 2002), Pacific Geoscience Centre, Lithoprobe Report No. 82, 132-133.

Kuiper, Y.D., Williams, P.F., Taylor, B.E., Carr, S.D, 2001. Timing of deformation in the Monashee Complex re-interpreted: new constraints from oxygen and hydrogen isotope studies. In: Lafrance, B., Canadian Tectonics Group 21st Annual Meeting (October 26-28, 2001), Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., Taylor, B.E., Williams, P.F., Carr, S.D, 2001. Early Eocene extension-related fluids in the Monashee Complex, southeastern BC. In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (February 22-25, 2001), Pacific Geoscience Centre, Lithoprobe Report No. 79, 89-90.

Kuiper, Y.D., Carr, S.D., Williams, P.F., 2000. Age constraints on penetrative structures at Joss Mountain, in the Selkirk Allochthon, southern Canadian Cordillera. In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (February 25-27, 2000), University of Calgary, Lithoprobe Report No. 72, 168.

Kuiper, Y.D., Carr, S.D., Williams, P.F., 1999. Geochronological, petrological and microstructural studies on the Thor-Odin dome, Monashee Complex, southern Canadian Cordillera. In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (March 5-7, 1999), University of Calgary, Lithoprobe Report No. 69, 296.

Kuiper, Y.D., Carr, S.D., Williams, P.F., 1998. Microstructural, petrological and geochronological studies on the Thor-Odin dome, Monashee Complex, southern Canadian Cordillera. In: Lin, S., Bleeker, W., Elliott, C., van Staal, C.R. (compilers), Geological Association of Canada NUNA conference and Canadian Tectonics Group 18th Annual Meeting (September 26-28, 1998), Canmore, Alberta, Canada.

Kuiper, Y.D., 1998. Microstructural, petrological and geochronological studies on the Thor-Odin dome, Monashee Complex, southern Canadian Cordillera; proposed Ph.D. research. In: Cook, F. and P. Erdmer (compilers), Slave-Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) Transect and Cordilleran Tectonics Workshop Meeting (March 6-8, 1998), Simon Fraser University, Lithoprobe Report No. 64, 272-273.