The nature of long-lived Appalachian terrane boundaries: An examination of the Tugaloo terrane and Brevard zone in the North Carolina inner Piedmont.

The goal of this project is to better understand the nature of Appalachian terrane boundaries and how such crustal boundaries can be reactivated throughout multiple orogenic episodes. To address this question, we will focus on the boundaries and extent of the Tugaloo terrane in the region of the Grandfather mountain window in western North Carolina. Understanding long lived crustal boundaries is important to understanding how orogenic systems work globally. In particular, we will produce a high resolution 1:24,000 scale map of the Collettsville Quadrangle. The Brevard zone bisects this quadrangle and separates rocks of the inner Piedmont (Tugaloo terrane) from those of the Grandfather mountain window (Grenville and Laurentian margin). In addition to the geologic mapping, potential field geophysics and modeling, microstructural analysis and geochemical fingerprinting will be used to understand the nature of this terrane boundary including its current three-dimensional geometry and how it has evolved throughout its geologic history.

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