FIELD NOTE 01
Glacial geomorphology·Greenland + Pyrenees
Tracing Deglaciation: Zackenberg Valley & Aneto Glacier
A geomorphological and geochronological study connecting glacial landforms, ice-flow mechanics and glacier retreat to reconstruct how landscapes respond to changing ice cover.
PROJECT SNAPSHOT What I investigated
Deglaciation phases in the Zackenberg Valley, NE Greenland, and glacier change in the Aneto Cirque, Pyrenees.
Methods
Digital geomorphological mapping · GIS & remote sensing · 10Be exposure dating · photogrammetry · ice rheology
KEY FINDINGS - 39 samples were inventoried across moraines, erratics and polished bedrock for cosmogenic exposure dating.
- Four deglaciation phases were reconstructed in the Zackenberg Valley, from approximately 50–80 ka to the Early Holocene.
- The Aneto glacier lost 64.7% of its surface area between 1981 and 2022, from 135.7 ha to 48.1 ha.
GEOLOGICAL TAKEAWAYCombining spatial mapping with 10Be geochronology provides a way to connect the shape of a glacial landscape with the timing of its evolution, while modern remote sensing reveals the continuing response of alpine glaciers to changing mass balance.
SKILLS DEMONSTRATEDGeomorphological mappingGIS & remote sensingCosmogenic datingPhotogrammetryIce rheology FIELD NOTE 02
Global tectonics·Geodynamics · Subduction
How Plate Tectonics Works: Forces, Rheology & Deformation
A synthesis of global geodynamics exploring how plate-driving forces, lithospheric rheology and subduction geometry shape deformation from oceanic trenches to continental mountain belts.
PROJECT SNAPSHOT What I investigated
Plate dynamics, mantle–lithosphere coupling, transform deformation, continental collision, intraplate uplift and subduction styles across global tectonic settings.
Methods & frameworks
Seismic tomography · plate kinematics · GPS/geodesy · focal mechanisms · balanced cross-sections · thermomechanical models · geotherms
KEY FINDINGS - Slab pull and gravitational edge forces provide major contributions to global plate motion, while mantle drag is not sufficient on its own to explain observed kinematics.
- Subduction geometry matters: buoyant ridges can promote flat-slab subduction, suppress arc magmatism and transfer compression far into continental interiors.
- Oblique convergence produces complex transpressional and transtensional systems rather than simple strike-slip motion, as illustrated by the Alpine Fault and San Andreas system.
- Thermal and rheological structure strongly influence how crust deforms during collision, extension and metamorphism.
GEOLOGICAL TAKEAWAYPlate tectonics is an integrated thermo-mechanical system: the geometry, temperature and density of the lithosphere influence where forces are transmitted and how deformation is expressed at the surface.
SKILLS DEMONSTRATEDGeodynamic interpretationPlate kinematicsStructural analysisSeismotectonicsThermal modelling FIELD NOTE 03
Metamorphic field geology·Central System · Spain
Mapping a Metamorphic Terrane: Prádena & Berzosa
A regional-to-detailed-scale study of the Eastern Guadarrama, combining 1:50,000 geological synthesis with 1:10,000 field cartography to understand lithology, metamorphic zonation, deformation and the evolution of the Variscan basement.
PROJECT SNAPSHOT What I investigated
The tectonometamorphic architecture of the Prádena sheet and the Berzosa shear-zone area, from regional geological relationships to detailed field-scale structures and mineral zones.
Methods & tools
1:50,000 & 1:10,000 geological mapping · structural measurements · thin-section petrography · stereographic projections · foliation trajectories · S–C fabrics · mobile GIS · geochemical & geochronological interpretation
KEY FINDINGS - Metamorphic zonation records a progressive Barrovian succession from lower-grade mineral assemblages toward high-grade sillimanite + K-feldspar zones and anatectic migmatites.
- Polyphase deformation is expressed through successive ductile shearing, folding and later brittle–ductile structures, with major shear zones localising strain within the Variscan basement.
- Scale changes interpretation: regional mapping reveals the architecture and geological history of the terrane, while detailed 1:10,000 cartography resolves foliation, fold geometry, shear fabrics and metamorphic boundaries in the field.
- The integrated framework links crustal thickening, metamorphic heating, partial melting and later exhumation/extension during the Variscan orogenic cycle, followed by younger Alpine deformation and uplift.
GEOLOGICAL TAKEAWAYMetamorphic terrains become much more interpretable when lithology, mineral assemblages and structures are mapped together. Working from regional synthesis to detailed field observations makes it possible to connect centimetre-scale fabrics with the tectonic evolution of an entire crustal domain.
SKILLS DEMONSTRATEDMetamorphic field mappingStructural geologyPetrographic interpretationStereographic analysisMobile GISGeological cross-sections FIELD NOTE 04
Sedimentary petrology·Microscopy · UCM
Reading Sedimentary Rocks Under the Microscope
A petrographic study connecting grain composition, texture, pore space and diagenesis to reconstruct how sedimentary rocks record both their depositional environment and post-depositional history.
PROJECT SNAPSHOT What I investigated
Detrital, carbonate and evaporitic rocks through hand-sample observation, thin-section microscopy, granulometry and X-ray diffraction, with emphasis on mineral components, matrix–cement relationships, porosity and diagenetic features.
Methods & tools
PPL/XPL optical microscopy · thin-section petrography · sieve granulometry · XRD/DRX · Udden–Wentworth & Krumbein φ scales · Pettijohn Q–F–R classification · Alizarin Red staining
KEY FINDINGS - Detrital provenance was assessed from quartz, feldspar and lithic fragments, including metamorphic, volcanic, plutonic and carbonate clasts.
- Carbonate textures were distinguished using grain–matrix/cement relationships and allochems such as ooids, bioclasts, peloids, cortoids and pisoids.
- Diagenesis and porosity were tracked through micritization, recrystallization, neomorphism, dolomite/calcite cements, compaction, dissolution and moldic or intergranular pore space.
- Granulometric and petrographic data link grain transport, depositional processes, source-area weathering and burial history within a single analytical workflow.
GEOLOGICAL TAKEAWAYThin-section petrography turns a rock into a record of processes: grain composition can reveal provenance, textures preserve depositional conditions, and cements and pore spaces document the fluids and burial conditions that modified the rock after deposition.
SKILLS DEMONSTRATEDOptical petrographyGranulometric analysisXRD interpretationSedimentary classificationDiagenetic analysisMicrophotograph interpretation 05
NorwayField · Trondheim
Geology in Trondheim
What changes when you start looking at an everyday landscape with a geologist's eye — and what I am noticing around Trondheim.
06
SedimentologyLearning
Reading a sedimentary log
How observations become a sedimentary interpretation, and why the geological story is rarely as simple as one neat answer.
07
EnergySubsurface
What makes a good reservoir?
Porosity, permeability and the geological history behind reservoir quality — without drowning in jargon.
08
LearningStudent life
Things I wish I knew before studying geology
Fieldwork, maps, software, mistakes and the gradual process of learning how to think like a geologist.