SYNTHESIS OF FIELD STUDIES USING VIRTUAL GLOBE SOFTWARE: AN EXAMPLE FROM CENTRAL ARGENTINA

Regional tectonic studies frequently involve several faculty colleagues and generations of students working in adjacent areas for years, if not decades. In the past, individual efforts have been documented in bound theses, published papers, oral presentations, and unpublished archives, including field notebooks, field photographs, photomicrographs, maps, cross sections, stereographic projections, etc. Ease of access to previous work varies widely. Some papers are readily downloaded from the Internet as pdf's while others are long forgotten. 

Virtual Globes such as Google Earth enable field geologists to synthesize data in new and exciting ways. For example, our work in central Argentina can be viewed in relation to that of previous graduate students, faculty colleagues, and local survey scientists. Individual maps are presented as Google Earth layers with variable transparency and at various scales. Cross sections are included using Google SketchUp and other data are attached to field locations using simple HMTL hyperlinks. The result is a regional overview that aids large-scale tectonic synthesis and facilitates map revision when new data becomes available.

Often, it is beneficial to compare similar geological processes in widely separated geographic locations. For example, the chevron folded accretionary complexes of the Sierras Pampeanas invite comparison with the Lachlan fold belt of southeast Australia. Google Earth folders and tours can be used to assemble multiple field studies and to organize data according to process as well as location. When studies primarily address structural and tectonic processes, independent of location, the ability to fly instantly from classic, type localities to current research areas promises great benefits.