 PRESIDENT'S CORNER:
Hello SDAG Members,
We had a great January meeting to start off 2025! Thank you to all that
were able to attend and hear a GREAT talk by Mr. Scott Rugg! Thank
you again, Scott, for highlighting the importance of accurate depth
readings when using CPT for fault investigations! It could mean the
difference between interpretating there is faulting or NOT, which is a
pretty big deal! Hopefully, no one lost too much sleep that night
thinking about previous fault investigations using CPT.
For our next meeting, and back by popular demand, we will be
returning to Tom Ham's Lighthouse for a very special presentation from
Dr. Karl Mueller, Professor of Geology at University of Colorado,
Boulder. Dr. Mueller will be flying in to present his new work on active
faulting here in San Diego! What's not to love! You're not going to want
to miss this presentation! Just a reminder Sunday February 9th at
noon, is the last day to sign up!
On a different note, I hope everyone has been unaffected and safe
from all the wildfires that have been popping up throughout southern
California...here's to hoping it rains this weekend! We desperately
need it.
Thanks, and see you all at the February 19th Meeting!! It'll be here
before you know it!
Heather Reynolds
2025 SDAG President
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ANNOUNCEMENT seeking volunteer for 2025 SDAG Vice President
If you or anyone you know is interested, please feel free to reach out to the current officers.
OSW outcrop of Paleocene Mount Soledad Conglomerate - 22 Feb. 9:30am - led by Abbott & Kies
Meet at the Torry Pines Glider Port. We will escort the group
down the stairs to Blacks Beach starting at 9:30 AM on
February 22. Park in the Southern lot of the Glider Port which
is at the end of Torrey Pines Scenic Drive OSW Indian Trail flyer
OSW Lake Cahuilla/Salton Sea - 9 Mar. 10:00am - led by John Peterson
Meet at the Christmas Circle, Borrego Springs. Drive and Short Hikes
Return: Approx. 3pm to Christmas Circle
Bring: Lunch, 4x4 Vehicle (Necessary - sandy/rocky), Gas, FRS Radios OSW Lake Cahuilla/SaltonSea flyer
2024 SDAG SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS
We are proud to announce two SDSU awardees and one USD awardee for the 2024 San
Diego Association of Geologists (SDAG) Annual Scholarships: Nicholas Oliver, Emily Imperato &
Jordan Jaeger. These 3 Outstanding Student Research Awards were selected by the San
Diego Geological Society Inc (SDGS) Board of Directors. These 3 awardees will be presented
with the awards during the SDAG program at our December Holiday Celebration.
Students accepting awards are requested to give an oral presentation of their research
results at our spring dinner meeting scheduled for April 2025.
SDSU Undergraduate Student ($1,000): Nicholas Oliver. Research Title - Examination of Middle Cambrian hyolithidans from the Manuels River Formation of Avalonian southeastern Newfoundland. Supported by: Dr. Rafael Almeida, Assistant Professor & Dr. Jessica H. Whiteside, Chair, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, San Diego State University.
SDSU Graduate Student ($1,500): Emily Imperato. Research Title - Constraining Natural and Anthropogenic Controls on Base of Freshwater and Underground Source of Drinking Water (USDW) In Central San Joaquin Valley. Supported by: Dr. Rafael Almeida, Assistant Professor & Dr. Matthew Weingarten, Associate Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, San Diego State University.
USD Graduate Student ($1,500): Jordan Jaeger (Jojo). Research Title - An investigation into the human health risks of lakebed sediments as a proxy for dust chemistry at the Salton Sea. Supported by: Dr. Bethany O'Shea, Professor, Environmental and Ocean Sciences Department, University of San Diego.
Wherever he goes, UC San Diego professor
emeritus Duncan Agnew, a geophysicist who has
studied earthquakes for 43 years, is asked whether
he can predict when an earthquake will occur.
"I was called for jury duty and was being
questioned by the lawyers when the judge
interrupted after hearing my profession and asked
whether we could have 'the big one' today,"
recalled Agnew, a Del Mar resident. "I responded
yes, it can happen at any time. I was not selected
as a juror."
Agnew's work has earned him recognition
as a leading scientist in the so-called Earth tides
field. In August 2024, he traveled to France to
receive an international lifetime achievement
award for "extraordinary experience and influence"
in the field. In describing Earth tides science,
Agnew explained, "just as the sun and moon push
and pull on the oceans to cause tides, they push
and pull on the Earth's soil and rocks. It's more
noticeable with ocean tides because water is
easier to move."
Soil and rock movement over long periods
of time can change the Earth's outermost layer and
help cause stress that eventually results in
earthquakes. In addition to Earth tides, other
causes of stress include the effect of ocean tides
and underground movement of tectonic plates.
He has spent much of his career measuring stress
and whether earthquakes can be predicted.
Although he can predict where they will
occur because he can measure stress, he cannot
predict when.
"The stress caused by movement is similar
to bending a [plastic] ruler," Agnew explained. "As
you bend the ruler at some point the ruler will
break. You know it will break, but you don't know
exactly when it will break." During the course of his
career, Agnew has worked to improve the ability to
analyze movement and stress.
Among other things, he wrote new computer
programs, developed mathematical calculations and
managed for 38 years the world's only (for some
time) laser-based strain meters, instruments that
measure Earth tides and show changes in the Earth's
outermost layer.
In addition, he formed and managed a
scientific team that installed and maintained
seismometers around the world, measuring
hundreds of earthquakes and widely sharing his
data.
Last year, while reviewing data of the Earth's
rotation, Agnew received worldwide media attention
when he discovered a slight rotation change causing
a risk that 1 second in time calculation will be lost by
2028. A 1-second loss could seriously affect the
internet and ability of computers to communicate
using identical time. His finding allows several years
to prepare and reduce the effects.
"I looked at the data and recognized the
Earth's rotation was speeding up," he said. "I saw
something in the data no one else had seen."
Agnew's discoveries and leadership are not
surprising, as he has spent a lifetime immersed in
he world of science. Born in 1951, he was raised in
Point Loma along with his brother. His father was an
engineer who enjoyed reading technical magazines
and shared them with his sons. Agnew recalls
reading them as a young child.
"I grew up a science nerd," Agnew said.
"Much of the 1960s and 1970s culture passed me
by. As long as I can remember, I just wanted to be a
scientist."
After graduating high school in 1968, he
attended California Institute of Technology, where
he graduated with a bachelor's in astronomy. He
went on to earn a Ph.D. in earth science from UC
San Diego in 1980.
Agnew was hired by Scripps Institution of
Oceanography at UCSD as an assistant researcher
in 1981. He advanced to professor in 1990 and has,
ever since, taught graduate-level classes and
conducted geophysics research.
Today, after 43 years at UCSD, Agnew is a professor
emeritus, meaning he officially retired but continues
to research and teach without compensation
because of his love for science, something he says
he will never lose.
Someone San Diego Should Know appears every
other Monday. Goldsmith is a Union-Tribune
contributing columnist.
About this series
We welcome reader suggestions of people who
have done something extraordinary or otherwise
educational, inspiring or interesting and who have
not received much previous media. Send
suggestions to Jan Goldsmith at
jgsandiego@yahoo.com
Postponing 2024 Annual Field Trip to September 2025! Updates to come
2025 SDAG MEMBERSHIP
Renew or become a new SDAG Member - 2025 Member Dues are Due!
On-line Payment ($30 Member; $10 Student):
https://www.sandiegogeologists.org/MemberForm.pdf
Mail in or Bring FORM to Meeting:
https://www.sandiegogeologists.org/MemberForm.pdf
2025 Corporate SDGS Sponsors
Renew or become a new 2025 SDAG Sponsor - Minimum $100 includes annual Membership.
https://www.sandiegogeologists.org/Sponsors.html
On-line Payment or Mail in Form:
https://www.sandiegogeologists.org/SponsorForm.pdf
CALL FOR PAPERS
From Past President Jennifer Morton:
Hello Geo Community! I am currently working on my Master's degree at SDSU. Part of my thesis will include compiling a
geodatabase of investigations on the La Nacion fault system. If anyone has done any trenching or other work on the
fault and is willing and able to share the information I would greatly appreciate it! Thank you and Happy Holidays!
Publications
Based on the interest for the out of Print 1998 SDAG Book "Geology and Geothermal Resources of the Imperial and Mexicali Valleys" this book
is now available as a Google E-Book. Due to the age of this book, not having any electronic files, the need to update to color etc...
the decision was made to create an e-book from a scan of the book. The link to purchase this book is now live on the SDAG website
(Lowell Lindsay's 1998 Geothermal Book!).
Here is the link to the SDAG Publication web page https://www.sandiegogeologists.org/Publications.html and a screen shot below showing
this E-Book. Thanks for the donated book from the Lindsays, Dave Bloom for scanning the book and posting it on our Google E-Book site,
and Carolyn Glockhoff for adding the link to our SDAG Publication page - now this out of print book can now be purchased as an e-Book!
Publication Announcement: Todd Wirths, the 2012 SDAG president and current SDGS
board member, has co-authored a couple of articles on our local paleontology involving two
Eocene marine formations, the Mount Soledad Formation and the Ardath Shale. Hopefully, he
will make a presentation (or two) out of it! Below is the Mount Soledad article; both articles
can be found online here, at https://cardinalhaven.wixsite.com/wsm2022; click on the
download instructions and go to page 55 for the Ardath Shale article on the announcement of
two new species of bivalves, and page 74 for the complete article on the Mount Soledad
Formation.
FIRST REPORT OF MEGAFOSSILS FROM THE TOURMALINE SURFING PARK
OUTCROP OF THE EOCENE MOUNT SOLEDAD FORMATION, LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA,
by Todd A. Wirths and N. Scott Rugh
Extended Abstract: Marine invertebrate megafossils from the Eocene Mount Soledad
Formation forming the seaside bluff at Tourmaline Surfing Park in La Jolla, San Diego,
California (Kennedy and Moore, 1971) were previously unknown. Recent collections made
during paleontological mitigation investigations have yielded a marine invertebrate fauna of at
least 32 species represented by internal and external molds of mostly bivalve, gastropod, and
scaphopod mollusks, as well as at least two species of crustaceans, at least one species of
echinoid, and trace fossils. The moderately to well-preserved molds, predominately in siltstone
with minor very fine-grained sandstone, exhibit little to no abrasion, with some bivalves still
articulated, indicating limited to no post-mortem transport. Individual fossils are generally
scattered; no evidence of shell beds or lags was observed.
Bivalves are dominated by multiple specimens of the nuculanids Nuculana (Saccella) gabbi
Conrad (ms.) of Gabb and Portlandia rosa (Hanna), with lesser numbers of Myrtucina
roseburgensis (Turner), Periploma eodiscus Vokes, and Tellina sp. aff. T. vorbei Hanna.
Bivalves represented by intact single specimens include cf. Modiolus sp., Pitar joaquinensis
Vokes, and Thracia sorrentoensis Hanna. Fragmentary bivalve specimens include Callista sp.,
aff. C. domenginica Vokes and Pitar uvasanus (Conrad). Almost all the gastropods consisted
of single specimens and include Natica rosensis Hanna, Sinum obliquum (Gabb), Cylichnina
tantilla (Anderson and Hanna), and cf. Phos sp. Scaphopods are relatively numerous,
represented by unidentified species of Dentalium and Cadulus. Identifiable decopod
crustaceans include the ghost shrimps Vegarthron santiago Schweitzer and Feldmann and
Neocallichirus rhinos Schweitzer and Feldmann, and the crab cf. Palaeopinnixa sp. The heart
urchin Schizaster diabloensis Kew is the identifiable echinoderm.
A "Domengine" provincial molluscan "stage" (late early Eocene - early middle Eocene of
Squires, 2003) is assignable to the fauna based on the restricted stratigraphic ranges of the
bivalves Portlandia rosa and Periploma eodiscus, and the gastropod Natica rosensis; the
highest stratigraphic occurrence of Pitar joaquinensis; and the lowest stratigraphic occurrence of
Thracia sorrentoensis (Givens and Kennedy, 1979; Squires, 2008). The depositional
environment for the Tourmaline Surfing Park outcrop of the Mount Soledad Formation has
been variously interpreted as submarine fan overbank deposits in a middle to upper continental
slope facies (Kies and Abbott, 1982; Link and Abbott, 1991), as an abandoned deep-water
channel overlain by a levee complex in a continental slope (May and Warme, 1991; Campion
et al., 1996), and most recently as a series of stacked channel deposits within a larger scale
submarine slope canyon or valley (Power et al. 2014). The composition of the fauna, in
conjunction with the depositional setting, suggests the sediments of the Tourmaline Surfing
Park outcrop of the Mount Soledad Formation may be, in part, coeval with the continental shelf
deposits of the early middle Eocene Ardath Shale.
In the news ...
ONE-STOP WONDER CHALLENGE!
ONE OSW A MONTH IN 2024
BE A PART OF SDAG HISTORY!
Have an idea for a one-day or half-day field trip?
Want to share your favorite aspect of San Diego geology?
Contact SDAG to schedule your One-Stop Wonder!
Your OSW may be chosen to be included in SDAG's One Stop Wonder Guidebook!
Contact Monte Murbach for scheduling! montemurbach@gmail.com
DID YOU KNOW THAT SDAG HAS A FACEBOOK PAGE?
Here is a link to the SDAG Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sandiegogeologists.org
As part of the update for the San DiegoTijuana Earthquake Planning Scenario, Working Group No. 1's "Fault Map Subcommittee"
completed the first publicly available bi-national active and potentially active fault map (http://sandiego.eeri.org/?page_id=265).
This interactive GIS map includes the first publicly available active and potentially fault map locations from the City of San Diego.
The map also integrated the faults south of the border for a bi-national cross border view.
This map is an on-going project as our knowledge increases about local active and potentially active faults.
You can expand the map legend on the left side to select layers that can be turned on or off for the map view.
You can also select from 1 of 12 base maps at the base map icon. You can click on the fault line in your map layer view to see the meta-data source.
In addition, the City of San Diego Seismic Safety Study Geologic Hazards & Faults Maps are available in the layer titled "GeoHaz SD City."
Please note that the City "Zone 12 Potentially Active" fault layers was not included in this data, therefore you will need to use the City Maps to find Zone 12.
The Fault Map link is available at: http://www.sandiegogeologists.org/Faults_map.html
I would like to thank Carolyn Glockhoff for her endless GIS work, Jim Quinn and the City for providing their data and time, Jerry Treiman with CGS for his time preparing the Surface Rupture
and providing their new State fault data layer, and Luis Mendoza at CICESE for providing the faults south of the border.
Please contact Diane Murbach (dianemurbach@gmail.com 619-865-4333), Chair for the SDTJ Earthquake Scenario Working Group #1 - Earth Science, if you have any questions, or see any errors on this new fault map.
Diane Murbach
(619) 865-4333
Engineering Geologist, C.E.G.
www.murbachgeotech.com
Photo of the Month
CALL FOR ARTICLES! SDAG invites members to submit articles on their current research or an interesting project they are working on for publication in the monthly newsletter.
The article should be no more than 1 page in length. Photos are welcomed, too! Please submit articles to the SDAG secretary via email.
Yosemite Conservancy Outdoor Adventures featuring custom adventures.
Got too many rocks?
Are you (or specifically, your spouse...) interested in giving them a good home *away* from your house and garden?
Mesa College is looking to collect some rock samples for an inaugural Earth History course.
We are specifically looking for sedimentary rocks that include examples of different energy environments (varying grain sizes and shapes) and structures (ripples, cross bedding, planar bedding, graded bedding, etc.).
We are also looking to beef up our fossil collection and are looking for all the major phyla: Echinoderms, brachiopods, mollusks (bivalves, cephalopods, gastropods), arthropods (trilobites and more!), corals (Cnidaria), Porifera, Bryozoa, vertebrates (Chordata), etc.
Looking for both actual standalone specimens or in the rock still (showing different environments of deposition).
We are looking for fossil preservation examples, and also for good trace fossil evidence.
Got any sediment grain samples from cool locales? We'll take them! If you have anything else you think provides a good 'story' in the rock, we are willing to check it out!
We are collecting ASAP to assess how much needs to be ordered for the fall course.
Please contact Jill Krezoski at JillKski@hotmail.com or Don Barrie at dbarrie@sdccd.edu with queries or samples.
ROCK DONATIONS NEEDED: Amy Romano, one of our former student members, is looking for rock donations.
Amy is currently attending Humboldt State University and majoring in Geology.
She is very involved with Humboldt's Geology Club, and every year the club holds a rock auction to support their activities.
If you have any rocks to donate, please contact Amy at ajr612@humboldt.edu.
Annual Scholarship Awards by the San Diego Association of Geologists, a program of the San Diego Geological Society, Inc.
A primary function of the San Diego Association of Geologists (SDAG) is to support academic opportunities in geology and related sciences.
By-laws of the San Diego Geological Society (SDGS) specify the support of academic opportunity ranging from elementary through graduate levels.
The SDAG scholarship program has supported academic research in higher education by awarding scholarships annually to students from two-year and four-year undergraduate and master's level programs.
Awards are for outstanding research in geology and related sciences.
Nominations are solicited from individual faculty and from geology or related science departments at accredited academic institutions.
Evaluation of the relative merit of each nominee is based on an abstract describing the objectives and results of the research being conducted by the student and on the letter of recommendation by the student's mentor or nominating committee.
The annual timeline is as follows:
- Request for nominations occurs in September.
- Nomination letters and research abstracts are received by the Scholarship Coordinator in mid to late October.
- Awardees and their nominators are invited to attend the December SDAG dinner meeting. Scholarship awards are distributed to the student during the December meeting.
- Students accepting awards are required to give a presentation of their research results usually at a spring dinner meeting of SDAG.
For further information contact SDGS Board at
http://www.sandiegogeologicalsociety.org/contact.html
through the Contact Us option
SDAG RESEARCH TOOL
A comprehensive listing of all papers published by SDAG, whether as annual field trip guidebooks or special publications, is available on our website.
Entries are sorted by primary author, or chronologically by date of publication, from our first guidebook in 1972,
up the San Luis Rey River in 2013, from Coast to Cactus in 2014, and finally over the edge to the Coyote Mountains in 2015.
These can be accessed or downloaded as .pdf files.
They are fully searchable in Adobe Reader or Acrobat, so if you are researching a topic, "tsunami" for example,
you can search for that keyword. This listing will be updated as new books are published.
Thanks to Greg Peterson and Hargis + Associates, Inc., for making this possible.
See the links below:
SDAG publications sorted by senior author.
SDAG publications sorted chronologically.
Request for Sponsors: 2025 SDAG/SDGS and Publication SPONSORS
On behalf of the San Diego Geological Society, Inc. (SDGS), a public benefit 501(c)3 nonprofit
educational corporation, we would like to request tax deductible Donations at our San Diego Association
of Geologists (SDAG).
The list of paid Sponsors and the forms to become a Sponsor are located on the SDAG web site at:
http://www.sandiegogeologists.org/Sponsors.html.
Your donation will further the SDGS mission to promote geology and related fields in the greater San
Diego region, operating through the San Diego Association of Geologists (SDAG), a committee of
SDGS. To achieve our primary educational objective, we organize frequent field trips and maintain a
program of monthly meetings featuring speakers on current geological topics. We also publish field trip
guidebooks and other publications related to geology and natural history. We encourage scholarship and
research by awarding scholarships from the elementary through graduate levels. With your $100
"EMERALD" donation, your name/business will be listed as a sponsor on the SDAG web site
(http://www.sandiegogeologists.org/) and in the monthly SDAG meeting newsletters. With your $500
"RUBY" or $1,000 or more "DIAMOND" level donation, your business card will also be included on the
SDAG web site and in the monthly SDAG meeting newsletters. In addition, as a "$1,000 or more
DIAMOND" level donation you will be presented with a thank you plaque.
Should you have any questions
regarding a Sponsorship, please contact our non-profit SDGS Secretary (Diane Murbach) at 619-865-4333.
SDGS/SDAG
As many of you are aware, the San Diego Geological Society (SDGS) was formed in early 2010 as an
official non-profit 501(c)3 corporation, and SDAG is now an organization under this corporation. The
reasons for doing this were many and they are spelled out in an informational sheet, the Business Plan
of SDGS. The officers of SDGS should be very familiar to you, as they are all past presidents of SDAG.
For those of you that would like to read more about SDGS and what it means to SDAG, check out the
informational page on the website.
Also check out the website www.sandiegogeologicalsociety.org.
VINTAGE SDAG GUIDEBOOKS NOW AVAILABLE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD!
If you want to complete your collection, or just see what SDAG was up to in the 1970s, check out our website's
publication page, and scroll all the way down: http://www.sandiegogeologists.org/Publications.html
In addition to our very first publication in 1972, a field trip to Otay Mesa, you'll find our 1973
Geology and Hazards of San Diego volume, the first of two guidebooks to the Coronado Islands, in
1978, and our 1987 field guide to the gold mines of Julian. Happy reading!
SDAG Wear - Monte (Murbach) has a variety of shirts, hats, visors and even a nice vest with the SDAG logo.
A small selection is available for purchase at the meetings; all SDAG wear can be ordered from Monte.
DO YOU HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT?? Do you have an event, job opening, field trip or other announcement you would like to share with our members??
Just call or email our SDAG Secretary.
Wednesday seminars, 1 - 2 pm, SDSU in the Chemistry-Geology Building, room CSL-422.
Check http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/seminars/ for details.
Department of Geological Sciences
San Diego State University
San Diego, CA 92182-1020
FAX (619) 594-4372 VOICE (619) 594-6394
The Gordon Gastil Endowed Scholarship Fund continues to seek donations of any amount.
Gifts of $ 500.00 or more will be recognized on a plaque to be placed in the remodeled Geology Building.
Donations can be sent through SDAG, or contact Pia or Marie, Department of Geological Sciences, SDSU, at (619) 594-5586.
SDSU-AAPG student chapter officers intention is to support student interest in petroleum and geology related fields.
Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists
AEG Inland Empire Chapter
The SCGS usually meets on the first Monday of every month, in Orange County. For more SCGS information, visit their website at:
http://www.southcoastgeo.org.
Our website manager, Carolyn Glockhoff, can create a link from any Corporate Sponsor's listing on the SDAG website to its company website, if one exists.
Also, please send the URLs of your favorite geology sites to carolyn@caro-lion.com for listing on the Geologic Links page.
These could be data resources, schools, useful government contacts, geologic software, contractors, laboratories, your own company's website, or anything you think would be useful to your colleagues.
DO YOU HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT?? Do you have an event, job opening, field trip or other announcement you would like to share with our members??
Just call or email 2023 SDAG Secretary.
Any news regarding upcoming events that may be of interest to the Association or news of your business can be submitted.
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