293-2 Bridging the Gap: Making Geological Field Research Accessible Through Film

Session: Deliver the Message: Harness Diverse Media and Divergent Methods to Describe and Depict Geoscience Information (Posters)

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The general public often doesn’t see how geological research funding is used or what it produces, as results can seem inaccessible or overly technical. This documentary aims to bridge that gap by showing the full process of field and lab work and explaining what the outcomes actually mean. It follows undergraduate field research, led by volcanologist Keith Brunstad, studying the Tieton Andesite lava flows of Bear Creek Mountain located in the South-Central WA Cascade Range. The flows, among the longest on Earth at 74 and 52 km, erupted from the Goat Rocks volcanic complex due to subduction of the Juan de Fuca Plate beneath the North American Plate. This film captures the full arc of the research, from setting up a remote field camp at Pinegrass Ridge to students returning to SUNY Oneonta for lab analyses. Footage was shot using a Lumix GH5, Sony HandyCam HDR-CX405, DJI Air 3s 1 inch CMOS camera + 70mm medium tele camera, and iPhone 13. All footage was edited using the Premiere Pro Adobe editing software. The documentary is structured in three parts. The first introduces the student researchers through morning routines and interviews, highlighting their motivations and expectations. It also reveals the logistics of organizing a remote camping and research trip with limited access to water and supplies. The second section covers the core fieldwork, including hiking, sample collection and drone imaging. Additionally, it emphasizes the physical and practical demands of conducting a field investigation, like climbing steep cliffs and talus slopes to collect samples. The final segment returns to the lab, where students reflect on their experiences and analyze samples using a Hitachi 3030 SEM with Bruker EDX and Olympus BX51 polarized light microscope. Their data is compiled into reports and posters for presentation at the 2025 GSA conference in San Antonio. Understanding the rheology and emplacement of long andesitic flows helps predict the behavior of similar volcanic systems and supports future hazard assessment and mitigation. Overall, this documentary aims to show the public the value of funding scientific field research by demonstrating its real-world role in preventing disasters and protecting communities.  

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

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