Field School 11 Field Guide - Barberton Supergroup

1 Introduction

The c. 3.57-3.22 Ga Barberton Greenstone Belt is one of the most important geological terranes in the world. This is primarily because it is one of very few locations where a pristine fragment of the early Earth is preserved. The rocks found here hold abundant information about the geodynamic functionality and evolution of the early Earth, the formation of continental crust and even clues about the origins of life as we know it. The Council for Geoscience Field School will provide the participants an opportunity of visiting this famous geological terrane. Here we will investigate how fundamental geological field observations throughout the Barberton Greenstone Belt, together with advanced analytical techniques have shed light about the early Earth. We will also spend a few days mapping the lower part of the Onverwacht Group and look for evidence of early Archean geodynamic processes.

2 Geological Overview

The rocks of the Barberton Greenstone Belt comprises the oldest Supergroup in South Africa, namely, the Barberton Supergroup. This forms the eastern portion of the Kaapvaal Craton and appears as a NE trending belt of highly folded volcano-sedimentary rocks that has undergone greenschist facies metamorphism. The Barberton Greenstone Belt is further defined by several granitic and granite gneiss TTG (tonalite, trondhjemite and granodiorite) plutons that have intruded the belt at various locations and times throughout its evolution. The Barberton Greenstone Belt can be separated into a two geochemically distinctive terranes, i.e. a Northern and Southern terrane, which are separated by the Saddleback-Inyoka Fault.

Geological overview of the Barberton Greenstone Belt, with simplified stratigraphic log (Hofmann, 2005)

3 Stratigraphy

The Barberton Supergroup is subdivided into three groups. This includes the lowermost c. 3.57-3.30 Ga Onverwacht Group of mafic and ultramafic volcanic rocks. Overlying the Onverwacht are the c. 3.55-3.25 Ga Fig Tree Group of chemical sedimentary rocks interlayered with mafic and ultramafic lavas. The topmost are the c. 3.23-3.22 Ga Moodies Group of mostly siliciclastic rocks.

3.1 The Onverwacht Group

The Onverwacht Group is a 8-10 km thick sequence of mafic/ultramafic mostly komatiitic basaltic rocks, interlayered with felsic tuff, chert and carbonate rocks. These rocks were probably formed in either a volcanic hot spot, or in an island arc setting. The Onverwacht is further subdivided into six formations. This includes, from bottom to top; the Sandspruit, Theespruit, Komati, Hooggenoeg, Kromberg and Mendon formations.

Generalised geology of the Onverwacht Group (De Wit et al., 2011)

3.2 The Fig Tree Group

The Fig Tree Group attains a thickness of c. 3 km and predominantly consists of turbidite deposits, banded iron formation, stratiform barite and interlayered volcanoclastic rocks. The rocks of the Fig Tree Group can be further subdivided into two facies-type deposits separated across the Saddleback-Inyoka Fault. This includes a shallow-water and deep-water depositional facies, south and north of the Saddleback-Inyoka Fault, respectively.

The southern facies can be subdivided into a lower Mapepe Formation and an overlying Auber Villiers Formation. The Mapepe Formation consists of ferruginous shales, banded iron formation, sandstone and barite-bearing conglomerate. The Auber Villiers Formation consists of felsic volcanics interlayered with turbidites and chert-bearing conglomerate.

The northern facies can be subdivided into, from bottom to top; Sheba, Belvue Road uppermost Schoongezicht formations. The Sheba Formation consists of banded iron formation with interbedded turbidites. The Belvue Road Formation consists of shale, banded iron formation and interlayered felsic volcanic rocks. The Schoongezicht Formation comprises felsic volcanics rocks with interlayered turbidites and conglomerate.

Stratigraphy of the Fig Tree and Moodies Groups north in the northern region of the Barberton Greenstone Belt (Anhaeusser, 1974)

3.3 The Moodies Group

The Moodies Group attains a thickness of c. 3.7 km and consists of sandstone, siltstone and conglomerate that was probably deposited in a shallow marine setting, such as a braided fluvial-tidal system.

Generalised stratigraphy of the Moodies Group north of the Saddleback-Inyoka Fault (Heubeck et al., 2013 )

3.4 TTG rocks

The various TTG plutons that surround the Barberton Greenstone Belt can be summarised into five distinctive age groups:

3510-3502 Ma - e.g. Steynsdorp Pluton

3469-3437 Ma - e.g. Stolzburg, Theespruit, Doornhoek Plutons

3229 Ma - e.g. Kaap Valley Tonalite

3216 Ma - e.g. (undeformed) Dalmein Pluton

3105 Ma - e.g. (undeformed) Mpuluzi Batholith

4 Deformation

The structural evolution of the Barberton Greenstone Belt is contentious. On the basis of the existence of plate tectonics during the early Earth, a polyphase structural evolution can be summarised as follows (after De Ronde and De Wit, 1994):

D0 (3490-3450 Ma) - extensional tectonics and alteration processes near volcanic spreading centers.

D1 (3450-3416 Ma) - subduction-like processes with the emplacement of a possible ophiolite complex in an intraoceanic setting and intruded by TTG plutons.

D2 (3260-3225 Ma) - a second phase of subduction-related accretion of the northern and southern terranes and the formation the Saddleback-Inyoka Fault.

D3 (c. 3100 Ma) - transtensional and transpressional tectonics along this terrane boundary, which also resulted in the NE-trending expression of the Barberton Greenstone Belt and the formation of strike-parallel faults.

D4 (< 3100 Ma) - NW-directed extension and the formation of gold mineralisation-controlling normal faulting development.

Another deformation model considers little to no plate tectonics at play, and rather the effect of rising and falling of mantle plumes and convective overturn (i.e. Van Kranendonk et al., 2009). These features are especially notable when considering the overall pattern across the Barberton Greenstone Belt, which highlights a dome and keel structure:

Dome and keel morphology of the Barberton Greenstone Belt, surrounding TTG plutons (Lana et al., 2010)

5 Gold mineralisation in Barberton

The Barberton Greenstone Belt is an important gold producing terrane in South Africa, with more than 350 operational gold mines. Gold mineralisation in Barberton is structurally controlled and is associated to the later deformational event, i.e. D4. Gold mineralisation was likely formed during a major protracted hydrothermal event as remobilised gold-bearing fluids flowed through permeable brittle fractures, i.e. extensional features. Two kinds of gold mineralisation is noted, namely, mineralisation associated to iron-sulphides and gold within quartz.

Overview of large gold mineralisation locations throughout the Barberton Greenstone Belt (Altigani et al., 2016)

Overview of structural features around the Sheba region (Altigani et al., 2016)

6 A model for the formation of early continental crust

A model describing the formation of Archean continental crust is provided by De Wit, 1998, and can by summarised as followed, starting with some important facts about Archean crust:

1. Archean Cratons, such as the Kaapvaal Craton have very deep subcontinental mantle keels, which reach depths of almost 400 km and were formed by c. 3.5-3.1 Ga. Trace element analysis on eclogite inclusions suggest that these keels may represent hydrothermally altered Archean oceanic crust (i.e. basaltic crust).

2. Deep seismic analysis suggest the presence of mantle discontinuities, which may represent crustal-scale shear zones. These shear zones apparently separate different crustal domains that were amalgamated together.

3. The Archean crust highlights low mantle heat flow patterns. This is probably due to low heat production and insulating effects.

Combining these factors suggests that the early Archean crust formed by tectonic stacking of hydrothermally altered oceanic crust. The model proposed by De Wit, 1998 suggests that this process formed as follows:

During Hadean times, there was dry recycling of ocean crust, where seawater levels remained low and the oceanic spreading centers were above sea level. Continued mantle degassing from c. 4.5 Ga onward, together with meteorite bombardment, would have seen the sea level rise enough to drown these oceanic spreading centers c. 4.0 Ga,

Thereafter, subduction of oceanic crust would have undergone adequate hydrothermal alteration, which allowed for the formation of more buoyant oceanic-lithosphere. This lighter and more buoyant material would resist subduction, thus forming duplex structures, i.e. stacks of oceanic crust. As this stacking process continued and the lower parts of the hydrothermally altered mafic rocks were buried deeper, these rocks underwent dehydration melting, with the products of melting representing the early TTG rocks. The TTG plutonic emplacement would have been facilitated along extensional shear zones. 

Over time, the gradual burial and partial melting of TTG rocks would have resulted in the formation of younger GGM rocks. During this evolution, the slab-pull effect became more prevalent and plate tectonic processes began to function more rapidly. This would eventually result in these early Archean fragments colliding and amalgamating to form larger continental masses.

Geodynamic model for the creation of early Archean crust (Polat, 2012)

7 Conditions on the early Earth

A model for the conditions of the early Earth is provided by Lowe and Tice, 2007, and can be summarised as followed:

The Earth was covered by large oceans and had few continental masses. Meteorite impacts were common and there would have been lots of tsunamis. There was a high concentration of volcanic activity and therefore a large outpouring of mantle gas. Due to a high concentration of these greenhouse gasses (i.e. carbon dioxide and methane), the temperature on Earth was substantially hotter than today, probably c. 70 degrees Celsius. In these conditions cyanobacteria would have struggled to survive and thus the Earth would likely have been dominated by thermophile bacteria. These conditions were however suitable for the formation of early Algoma-type banded iron formation.

Early Earth might have looked something like this (without the humans and drama)

As continental crust continued to grow, rates of weathering increased. This resulted in a drawdown of the carbon dioxide and eventually methane. This eventually resulted in global cooling and even glaciation c. 3.0-2.9 Ga.

The global cooling and relatively stable conditions on the earth Earth, in addition to the changes to the chemical atmospheric conditions allowed for the growth of stromatolitic-producing cyanobacteria and oxygentation of the Archean atmosphere. 

This process of an increase in greenhouse gas, growth of continental crust and eventual drawdown of greenhouse gas seen c. 3.5-2.9 Ga appears cyclic throughout the Earth history and appears again c. 2.75-2.2 Ga and 1.0-0.5 Ga.

11th Annual CGS Field School

Once again it's nearly that time of the year when the Council for Geoscience (CGS) hosts it's annual geological field school. This year will be the 11th installment of the CGS field school and the organising team is going all out to ensure that the 2016 participants experience the best of South African geology, while being exposed to the fundamental principles of field-based geological observations and interpretations.

Overview of the 11th CGS Field School 2016

South Africa has exceptional geological exposures that provide important evidence of the intricate workings of the early Earth, the origins of Life and of course, an extensive array of economical mineral commodities. The 2016 CGS Field School will aim to expose the participants to much of this with a trip across South Africa.

Notable geological features that will be visited include: 

The Barberton Greenstone Belt - here we will discuss the Archean Earth and how did it function, how was early continental crust created and we will look for early evidence of life. We will also have a two-day mapping exercise across a notable highly strained region and look for evidence supporting early Earth theories.

The Pongola Supergroup - one of the earliest volcano-sedimentary sequences that likely formed atop a continental platform, at a time where much of the Earth was still producing Greenstone Belts. What implications does this region have for the workings of the early Earth?

The Karoo Supergroup - this covers more than two thirds of the surface area of South Africa and hosts some of the world's largest coal reserves and potentially vast shale gas. This is also hosts a significant Permian vertebrate fossil record.

We will also have a mapping exercise of the Gariep Supergroup, in the Gariep Belt, see: Geology of the Gariep Belt and for our participants, do see: Things to Bring

This is just some of the geology we will encounter, for more of the geology we expect to cover, see: (CGS Field School 2015 Day 1&2); and (CGS Field School Day 3-5) and follow us for regular updates about the CGS Field School 2016 edition!

The Geology of Table Mountain

If you are attending the 35th International Geological Congress meeting in Cape Town this year (or if you are ever in the Mother City), you will undoubtedly stand in awe of the city's most iconic feature - Table Mountain. You may then even decide to venture up the mountain, either by hiking up or by using the famous cable car. If you are so inclined, you may often gaze upon the immense beauty of the Fynbos vegetation. These characteristic shrubs are of world acclaim, accounting for more than 20% of endemic plant species on the African continent. No wonder that this region has been established as a World Heritage Site. You may also occasionally look upon the rocks and wonder about their history. Well, you're in luck: below is a brief overview of the geology of Table Mountain and a geological map for your pleasure!

 Some examples of the Fynbos on Table Mountain. Geophyte (Watsonia) top left, Ericas (Red Heath) right and Aster (bottom left).

The rocks making up Table Mountain fall largely within the Table Mountain Group, which further falls within the Cape Supergroup. The Table Mountain rocks are clastic sedimentary rocks that were deposited in an evolving braided stream - lagoon - beach environment. This evolution is defined by continuous fluctuations of sea-level and sedimentary transport styles over millions of years, with these rocks being deposited between ca. 500-450 million years ago. Look carefully at the variation in the rock texture, grain size and even evidence of depositional orientations.

Glacial deformation in the Pakhuis (top), Peninsula large quartzite boulders and cliff faces (bottom left), Graafwater fine-grained sandstone (bottom right).

The lowermost rocks that you will encounter on Table Mountain are thin reddish-maroon siltstone, fine-grained sandstone and light brown to purple sandstone of the Graafwater Formation. These were formed in a tidal flat estuarine environment and have an abundance of various sedimentary features and trace fossils - how many can you spot?

Overlying the Graafwater are the pebble-rich quartzite and quartz arenites of the Peninsula Formation. These well bedded grey rocks comprise much of the steep cliff faces of Table Mountain and formed as a braided fluvial system depositing along the subtidal continental shelf. 

If you still have some energy upon reaching the top of Table Mountain and would like to experience an ice-age proportional climatic shift, then do continue toward Maclear's Beacon. As you approach this famous landmark you may notice the large and rounded outcrops of the Pakhuis Tillite. These immature rocks consist of glacial diamictite with faceted and striated quartz pebbles, which were deposited during a 35 million year long ice-age during the upper Ordovician period. Can you spot any glacially-driven deformation in these rocks?

Geological map of Table Mountain - Special 35th IGC edition. Download high resolution version here.

How to draw a geological cross section

Following on from our 2015 field school feedback session, it was evident that many participants struggled with constructing a geological cross section. I thus decided to make a very brief and simple guide. This cross section is located in Area 5 of the 2015 field school mapping region, west of Eksteenfontein, Northern Cape, South Africa:

Step 1. Choose a section line that runs perpendicular to the general bedding/foliation fabric:

Always choose a line perpendicular to the general orientation of the bedding or foliation fabric because it will allow you to cross more of the geology and get a true representation of the geological structure.

Step 2. Generate contour profile:

In the "old days" you would do this with a topographic map and mark elevation points along your cross section line and then connect the dots. These days, I suggest doing it automatically using a digital elevation model (DEM). This can be done using the Profile Tool plugin for QGIS or 3D Analysis in ArcGIS. This can also be done in Google Earth by creating a line and selecting "show elevation profile".

Step 3. Extrapolate geology along section line onto contour profile:

Extrapolate the outline of the geological polygons and structural lines, such as, faults and fold axes, onto the contour profile. Ensure that you note the dipping angles for these features.

Step 4: Complete the drawing:

Now complete the geological polygons and structural lines. Remember to ensure that your geological layers dip at the same angle as measured in the field (assuming no vertical exaggeration). Insert structures (e.g. folding) as defined by surface data (e.g. fold axes). Apply colour. Do a final cross check to make sure that the stratigraphy is in the correct order.

2015 Feedback Sessions

And thus ends another CGS field school, this time an especially notable occasion as it was the 10-year anniversary of the programme! We ended this auspicious event with the usual fanfare, and much loathed, feedback sessions. 

Research topic presentations and the certificates of achievement being awarded by Nick Baglow, Mapping Geosciences Competency Manager

Also, we provided the the participants a platform to present their individual research assignments to a strict, and international, panel of experts (from the CGS). These presentations are becoming a very important facet of the field school as many have not had an opportunity to present in a professional communication manner. Feedback here is golden. 

                                       

Final certificates being handed over and the field school participants standing proud at their posters - some tough questions being asked by Henk Coetzee (far right)

There was of course a feedback session regarding the geological maps, cross sections and South African stratigraphic reports. The South African stratigraphy will now be deeply ingrained in many of our participants and will hopefully prove useful for their careers in the geosciences.

Overview of maps produced during the 2015 CGS field school

Overall, everybody performed exceptionally well and we wish them all of the best in the future.

The CGS field school will now look to the future and continue to evolve with the times, the Anthropogenic times that is. It is envisioned that the field of 2016 is going to be mind blowing - so watch this space! 

In Living Colour - Eksteenfontein 2015

Here are some more highlights of the Field School 2015. Thanks to Nick Baglow for the awesome pictures!

The Richtersveld is a land faraway, filled with wide expanses and a lifestyle that takes you back centuries.

Every year, some young, wild and willing geoscientists make the long trek here. Unawares and in for big surprises.

Homesickness never strikes, how can it when you are welcomed by mother-like figures who tend to your every need and desire.

Food is plentiful...

However, you must be willing to pay the price [Here, our team decided to visit a local sheep auction. We had R950 in our kitty, bidding started at R950! Suffice to say, we were taught a lesson in the art of auctioneering].

Fun and games do however have to come to an end, and the real work starts.

Once the real work starts, there are the other locals waiting to welcome us.

Information comes in a massive dose: "look parallel to the foliation, and perpendicular to the mineral elongation lineation".

The rocks have a long story to tell - S0 parallel to S1, note the S2 and find S3, with the development of crenulations.

Notes must be taken feverishly to ensure that all the details are recorded.

 Notes must be taken feverishly after the field work too!

 Sometimes notes must be taken while clambering up steep rock faces.

Despite the hardships, there is always time to have fun and be cool.

Sometimes, very, very cool.

So, come on Field School and learn to fly!

See the world.

And make some new friends, colleagues and other geoscientists alike.

Richtersveld Science Week 2015

This year we marked the 10^th year of the Council for Geoscience Field School with our 2^nd Richtersveld Science Week. This year we aimed high, visiting three schools within the Richtersveld region. These included; the Stephen Malherbe Laerskool in Eksteenfontein, the Johan Hein Laerskool in Kuboes and the Hoerskool Alexander Bay.

The location of these schools, especially the primary schools, in the furthest north western region of South Africa has resulted in them being largely isolated and almost forgotten. Many of these scholars face a dire future, with few opportunities and even lesser support. Despite this, the exemplary commitment shown by the teaching staff at these schools is inspirational. As such the Field School team has felt obliged to try and give something back to these communities. After all, these communities have warmly welcomed and supported us for our many years of visiting and performing our research.

The Science Week programme closely followed the school curriculum. For the primary schools, this broadly consisted of a lecture series focussing on the solar system, space travel and the life of a geoscientist. We also ran a volcano and river system experiment much to the delight of the students. For the high school, we placed a strong emphasis on possible bursary and scholarship opportunities, as well as information about subject choices and grades required for university entry. We also had special lectures by other young geoscientists and some of our very own field school participants.

An extra special surprise for all the schools this year was the donation of GIS-ready desktop computers. Nine computers were very generously donated by the Council for Geoscience and prepared by our ITC department. Most were equipped with GPU’s and had various open source software installed. This included; Quantum GIS, Stellarium, GIMP, Inkscape, Open Office and Google Earth. In addition, various spatial data was copied onto these machines, including; SPOT, Landsat and CGS Geological Data. Brief training sessions were held with the teaching staff, equipping them with knowledge to share with the scholars.

We hope that these computers will allow the scholars an opportunity to gain early PC literacy, especially understanding the ins and outs of GIS. It cannot be perceived where this kind of advantage could lead. We may have South Africa’s next top scientist coming from the Richtersveld!

Overview of the Field School 2015

Here is an Amazing summary of this year's field school, a MUST READ:

By: Leslee Salzmann

A ROUND TRIP OF THE COUNTRY

Few people can attest to having circumnavigated South Africa. Whilst this opportunity is usually restricted to mad-hatter-adventurists biking their way around the country and decrepit retirees with a caravan and a few years of free time to kill, this year’s field school saw a bunch of Council for Geoscience interns doing just that! (Okay we missed out Limpopo and the Free State if you must know).

Field mapping school is a Council initiative intended at metamorphosing young and inexperienced additions to the company into gung-ho, GI Joe geologists. It affords new interns the opportunity to witness first-hand the country’s main stratigraphic units (Supergroups) and geography, but more importantly, to gain practical experience in mapping and field work. To this end we spent a week driving to various points of geological fascination, received tuition in imperative skillsets such as remote sensing and GIS, spent ten days in the Richtersveld (Northern Cape) learning the hard way how mapping is done, after which we headed home. But not without passing a number of the country’s largest mines (iron and base metals, limestone, dimension stone, ‘granite’, brick clay and pegmatites included) and being harassed by two emus in Upington. Innumerable drool-worthy geological sites were seen along the way and all of us have been left with memories, stories for the grandkids and perhaps the need for a little psychological counselling and a pedicure.

BREAK IT DOWN

To kick off field mapping school thirteen interns and five soon-to-be-tortured supervisors (Taufeeq, Nick, Neo, Tshimane (aka Doc) and Conrad) met up in Pretoria and made our way slowly and steadily in a clockwise manner around the country. We drove through from Gauteng to the Barberton Greentsone Belt and GeoTrail in Mpumalanga, witnessing some of the oldest rocks in the country.

            

We passed by coal-bearing deltaic deposits of the Ecca Group as we traversed KwaZulu-Natal – which I’ll have you know were the only redeeming quality of the Karoo Supergroup exposures along the entire eastern coastline! Stopping at Hole in the Wall in the Eastern Cape was a guilty indulgence which we could not pass up. Jennifer –a member of our clan– had never before seen the ocean and this was a milestone experience for her, enough so that she had nightmares of the sea that night (Lets call them dreams rather. Vivid dreams). Shin-high dunking was the most we were going to get out of her despite best efforts.

Thereafter we stopped in East London and Knysna, having entered into the disfigured Cape Fold Belt lithologies.  Onwards we drove into the Western Cape passing through the quaint and idyllic dorpies of Oudtshoorn, Montagu and Worcester. Luckily for us it was still light as we traversed through Bain’s Kloof Pass, one of the ‘most picturesque passes in the Cape’, constructed by the labour of convicts in 1853 and home to insane folding nog al!. In good old Cape Town we received a regal Peninsula tour (geologically oriented I swear). The fish and chips from Kalk Bay were nothing more than a necessary pit stop) and thereafter we made our way up to the north-western limits of the Northern Cape (or as we like to say: the back-ass­ end of nowhere), where we were to carry out the bulk of our fieldtrip season doing what we all came for: mapping and perhaps a little dollop of trial and tribulation.

RICHTERSVELD IMMERSION

The field mapping school this year felt like a passage of fire to the majority of those who attended. This is despite the fact that we were never subjected to the harsh realities of camping in the near-desertlike Richtersveld for a fortnight as previous years have been known to do. Instead we found ourselves rather comfortably accommodated in the house of one of a local “Tannie” and immersed in a cultural experience. We stayed amongst the very isolated and quaint Nama settlement of Eksteenfontein, at the very northern reaches of the Northern Cape, and by the end of the trip were venturing forth with all manner of basterdised Afrikaans in an attempt to communicate with our hosts (most likely to request more vetkoek for breakfast).

Our task for the two weeks was to map and collect structural data for a portion of the Port Nolloth Zone within the Pan-African aged Gariep Belt. This elongate, north-south and coast-parallel striking zone was deposited/intruded during the rifting and separation of the Kalahari Craton of southern Africa from the Rio Del Plata Craton of South America beginning around 771±6 Ma. This rifting led to the formation and infilling of the Adamastor Ocean, but was overprinted with a distinct compressive thrusting regime when these cratons later reunited to form Gondwana (~575 to 545 Ma). It is precisely this later tectonic and metamorphic overprint which confounds and stymies any but the most fervent of structural mappers, and certainly challenged and humbled us as interns as we attempted to conquer our designated map sheets. Rather than allowing us an easy ride, our field school leaders decided to challenge us with an area subjected to extension, transpression, thrusting, back-thrusting, distortion due to intrusions, overturning, metamorphic overprinting and the like. We like to think that we rose to the challenge. They humoured us and allowed us to think that.

Surprisingly, the Richtersveld had other hurdles to throw at us apart from unbearable heat. One day was so miserably windy that it saw me catching my precious notebook by the corner of a single page as it flapped madly in the wind at a 90° angle and threatened to fly away faster than ever I could run to catch it. Losing your notebook in the field would be akin to losing your 3-year old toddler at the beach on New Years. Generally frowned upon and, depending on how much work was in that notebook (or how much you wanted to keep said toddler), unforgiveable.

One choice day saw us heading out in 14°C, rainy and (yes, you guessed it) windy conditions. Some of us hoped for a split second that we would be allowed to stay cuddled up in bed with our fluffy socks, but alas this was not the case. Our slave drivers had us out traipsing through the elements, as per every other day, regardless. Thus there dawned on us the harsh realities of a career spent outdoors, and thus we developed a new level of respect for those in our company who do this on a near-continuous basis- oftentimes in conditions worse than this. A case in point is the ‘Namibian team’ who have been known to work without even a permanent nightly camp but rather by moving camp each night and carrying all provisions (including up to 12L of water) on their backs. Work is carried out across deathly-cold winter nights and fiery summer days alike.

Other hitches encountered in the field were snakes, thorns, ticks and perhaps most hazardous of all: squishy succulents. Beware these unassuming specimens: one false step will have you sliding downhill and falling on your butt in the most painful fashion. Another lethal adversary: dolomite which can shred the most hardened of boots and will most certainly leave you with a bum-flap if you are unwise enough to sit down in a moment of weakness. It had me feeling rather unprofessional as I walked around each day with my panties exposed. The dolomite, together with the searing heat of midday, had a way of eating away at one’s boots and I can boast at having used three tubes of superglue on my shoes in order to see them through the entire fieldtrip. Now that’s hardcore!

Some last highlights for the trip were:

1)    Passing through the UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld Ai Ais National Park where we saw a field of literally hundreds of cairns, which had been stacked by passers-by since who knows when as well as some SAN etchings reportedly “1000s of years old”!

2)  The incident with the tick which found a household of girls squealing and ended with the tick’s prolonged and agonised death on the hotplate of the stove.

3)   Trying to get a good look at a snake the size of a ruler which had slithered under a bush, which elicited the fearful warning from one of the girls (who shall remain anonymous. We’ve got you covered): “You’re making it angry! You’re going to make it angry!”

4)   Swimming in the Orange River- a stone’s throw away from the Namibian border

5)  The slaughtering of a sheep. Yes we actually entered into an auction for a sheep to braai. What can we say, the Eksteenfontein lifestyle was charming.

A non-scientist in the field: Day 2

By: Cindy

The first part of my day started with a very worthy cause of educating our young learners of Eksteenfontein. We visited the primary school which hosted our efforts. Looking at the excited little faces of 11-14 year olds from grades 5-7 made the start of the day perfect. We enlightened their little lives with information of Earth science and what you need to become a young scientist. The CGS also donated computers to the schools.

The second part of my day went unexpectedly well. I was a bit overwhelmed with the information loading of the geology as I am not a scientist and I did feel intermediated. As the day progressed I felt more comfortable as taking notes of the discoveries helped me to understand the basics of the Richtersveld geology. On my first attempt of measuring the dip and the dip direction was quite an amazing experience. Thanks to my tutor Taufeeq I feel comfortable with the study of geology.

#Geology; #Amazing; #OMG; #Etc...

My discoveries of the day were:

• Lekkersing conglomerate (and quartzites)
• How to identity a rock/formation with characteristics of :
o Colour
o Sorting
o Roundness
o Grain size
o Structure
o Mineral
o Matrix

• What is a shear and the direction
• Fracturing
• Lineation
• Foliation (Shearing)
o Bedding – non foliation
o S1- Foliation
o S2-Acute angle 45 degrees
• Stratigraphy highlights

Guys thank you for hot weather experience, walking 2km, heavy bags, having to use nature as a toilet and for the major support of the team and encouragement. 

A non-scientist in the field: Day 1

By: Cindy Petersen

Key words: Patience, communication, dedication…. These are words are jump out at me when I think of my first day in the field with geologists. I now have major respect for a geologist as this is a true art detecting and exploring the science of our dear earth. I have learned a lot for the lectures that were given and also so many avenues of understanding were opened . Due to my experience in the field I can perform so much better with the tools I have been handed. The quality of the communication towards to Education of the intern is exceptionally well but major improvements can be done within the field of communication between the team members. Case and point, safety of team members has to be improved and relaying the message more clearly will have a much more positive effect than just not saying a word.

Cindy and Yasmine on the field school

I believe that day one was not an eye opener to the team leaders but also to the rest of the team who have dedicated themselves to this great initiative. Furthermore, the Field School can be an amazing tool to create and nurture the skills of our future scientist. To Day one we bid you goodbye.