FIELD WORK IN THE DIGITAL AGE, MAPPING WITH CATHY BUSBY IN CENTRAL CALIFORNIA AND NORTHERN CHILE

Detailed field studies provide the foundation for traditional mapping, remote or digital data analysis, and conceptual model development. Although use of digital and remote mapping is growing and the technology is improving, traditional mapping skills provide fundamental ground truth allowing for the creation of maps and models through direct observations and field experience. Cathy Busby, leading by example, played a formative role during my early mapping education in the central Sierra Nevada and northern Chile. Cathy demonstrated the importance of field work in mapping and understanding the larger framework while in presence of actual field observations. These experiences were integral in preparing me for a career mapping at the USGS in the northern California Coast Ranges, where I work adjacent to large active fault zones and natural resources such as The Geysers.