Turkey 2006

 

 

 

 

 

Starting this year (2006) I will work on several topics with regard to Turkish geology. The main issue concerns the reconstruction of the three-dimensional evolution of the Menderes metamorphic core complex in western Turkey, which is the topic of my VENI project. This reconstruction will be carried out through integrated structural, stratigraphic, paleomagnetic, geochronologic and petrological analysis of the metamorphic and especially granitoid rocks of the core complex, and the over- and outlying sedimentary basins. To this end, a first reconnaissance field trip was carried out in may 2006 focussing on sampling of the western Turkish and some eastern Greek Miocene granitoids for paleomagnetic, geochronologic and petrologic analysis.
Additionally, I am involved in supervision of several PhD students, and in June 2006, I joined the field campaign of two of them, Silja Huesing and Ahmet Peynircioglu in eastern-Anatolian. Finally, in late April, the Middle East Technical University of Ankara and the Utrecht group organised themselves a central Anatolian excursion, of which some highlights are shown here.

 

 

 

Drilling in the M-type granite of Ikaria...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On my Menderes trip, I was joined by my friend Flora Boekhout, who here slowly slaughters a sweet little bunny rabbit :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flora Boekhout, here drilling the M-type granite of Ikaria (Greece).

 

By the way, we saw the holes, so WHO OF YOU PALEOMAGNETISTS HAVE BEEN THERE BEFORE US? :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Granite dikes and sills intruding a metasedimentary succession on Ikaria (Greece)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paleomagnetic work means drilling samples of course...and that brings nice picture opportunities...so to get it over with, here and below you'll see us showing of some muscle, and then we'll go to more scenic pics ;)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drilling the Koyunoba granite, north of Simav...we just managed to finish before the daily thunderstorm...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting cooling water...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and continue drilling

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

filling...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

drilling...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trying to convince little kids that taking samples from dull granite is really important...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trying to convince grown-ups that taking samples from  dull granite is really important :) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just convinced Flora that taking samples from dull granite is really important :D

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting the car tired...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excursion vehicles after a long day in the field :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ISES Excursion team: from left to right and back to front:

me, Rinus Wortel, Manfred van Bergen, Nuretdin Kaymakci, Ilkay Kuscu, Rob Govers, Cor Langereis, (front left:) Flora Boekhout, Maud Meijers, Ahmet Peynircioglu, Pinar, Basak and Ayten Koc

 

 

 

 

Me, discussing some wild ideas about Turkey

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cor, asking nasty questions about them :(

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the most pittoresque Turkish villages, Safranbolu, in northern Turkey...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sheets drying in the streets of Safranbolu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And more of Safranbolu...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Garnet schist in the southern Menderes Massif...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discussion in the field with Erdin Bozkurt (METU, Ankara)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Volcano in the Kula fields...reddish to the right is a pumice cone, dark grey to the left a lava flow that comes out of the cone crater. Me for scale.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EASTERN TURKEY

 

 

Fieldwork in eastern Turkey was carried out for the PhD projects of Ahmet Peynircioglu (or just 'Kaas')

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of Kaas's supervisors is Nuretdin (Nuri) Kaymakci, who  also joined this year's field campaigns in Turkey...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And merged together they look like this :D

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and the other eastern Anatolian PhD project is the one of Silja Huesing...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...who amongst other issues tackles the stratigraphy of the Miocene flysch on Arabia (here, a small part of the long Kahramanmaras section

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cor giving a lecture in the field. Nobody's listening :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Silja on a site in the steppes of the Arabian platform, close to the border with Syria. Note the steppe village in the back

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The beautiful emptiness of the steppe between Gaziantep and Diyarbakir.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turkey has some spectacular volcanic fields. Here the cinder cones of Kula (western Turkey). The blackness behind the green fields are Pleistocene lavas

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edge of a lava on the Karacadag shield volcano south of Diyarbakir, eastern Turkey

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...with beautiful Pahoehoe ropy flow structures...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fence, made out of basalt lava :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...And of course some wildlife!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Water turtles...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a gekko...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A very strong ant...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and Flora :)