FMURF Project Overview:

Project Overview: 

The East Bay preserves the tectonic evolution of the California Coast Range. The Coast Range Ophiolite (CRO) consists of dismembered units of oceanic crust and volcanicpelagic sediments (171–161 million years (Ma)) that span from Santa Barbara County to the Klamath Mountains. These units are hypothesized to have formed in a supra-subduction zone environment. Stratigraphically, the CRO lies beneath the Great Valley Sequence (15066 Ma), a forearc basin deposit, and is in fault contact with the Franciscan Complex (18066 Ma), an ancient accretionary wedge. In the Oakland area, the Great Valley Sequence records a deep marine basin sitting between the Sierra Nevada volcanic arc to the east and the Franciscan subduction complex to the west. The local stratigraphy includes: the Leona Rhyolite (a controversial arc-volcanic unit of contentious age), the Knoxville Formation (fossil-bearing shales and siltstones), the Joaquin Miller Formation (predominantly sandstone and siltstone), the Oakland Conglomerate, the Shepard Creek Formation (interbed shale and siltstone), and the Redwood Canyon Formation (sandstone, shale, and siltstone). Tectonic activity has tilted and deformed the strata. By decoding structural relationships, ages, and lithologies of these formations, we can better reconstruct the timing of major Cordilleran tectonic events and understand the development of the continental margin.

The remarkable geology of the Oakland Hills offers a unique gateway to local earth science. There is a significant gap in representation and diversity in geoscience, currently, only 10% of geoscience bachelor’s degrees and roughly 5% of doctoral degrees are held by Latinos. Increasing diversity and access to Earth science is important for students to engage in their local environment and to expand pathways toward higher education, especially in STEM. To address this, a core component of this project is creating accessible field guides of Oakland’s geology in English and Spanish for students and the public. By providing accessible pathways to explore the rich geological history, we aim for Latino youth to see themselves as future scientists and encourage the pursuit of higher education in the geosciences.