Dr. Charu Sharma

This six-week long course will start with an introduction to processes acting on the surface of the earth such as weathering, erosion, rivers and streams, glaciers, work of the wind, coastal processes, and groundwater.  It will then examine the outcome of surficial processes, i.e. the sedimentary record.  Topics such as sedimentary rocks, their deposition, stratification, and their role in fossil fuels will be discussed.  The topic of stratigraphy will be taken up in detail as the main means of interpreting the geologic history of sedimentary rocks.  Various types of stratigraphy will be discussed such as litho, bio, chrono, magneto, chemo and seismic stratigraphy.  The key concepts of sequence stratigraphy and its application in the exploration for hydrocarbons will be discussed.  The topic of sea level change will be examined in terms of the driving mechanism behind it, its impact on the sedimentary record, and on the climate.  Two field trips are planned; one will look at a modern marginal marine environment such as a marsh-lagoon-estuary system and the biota within, and the other trip will examine the fossiliferous chalk cliffs of the Cretaceous Period in southern England.