Collaborative Research: Cenozoic Exhumation and Tilting in the Southern Coast Mountains

Occidental College, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

0001223 Farley 0001147 Rusmore The relationships between topography, tectonics, exhumation and climate are complex, and identifying and separating the factors is difficult. The Coast Mountains of British Columbia are a single physiographic range bordered by a transform margin in the north and a convergent margin in the south, yet preliminary data indicates that the Cenozoic exhumation history along the length of the range was uniform. This circumstance provides an opportunity to evaluate the dominant mechanism controlling the formation and evolution of this mountain range. The work involves an integrated low-temperature geochronologic, paleomagnetic and structural study across the southern part of the orogen and comparison to similar recent work to the north. Results are expected to shed light on the factors controlling topography in this orogen, which should help understand the formation of mountain ranges in general.