Virtual fieldtrip on the geoarchaeology of south Corinth Gulf

Niki Evelpidou, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

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Summary

This virtual fieldtrip takes place on south Corinth Gulf. The Gulf of Corinth is a major tectonic and geomorphological feature in central Greece, separating the Peloponnese in the south from the mainland in the north. The study area has a rich geoarchaeological history, with uplifted and submerged antiquities such as ancient harbors, tidal notches, beachrocks, coastal terraces, testifying to a complex sea level history affected by local tectonics.
This virtual fieldtrip focuses on geoarchaeological sea level indicators, addressing topics such as Holocene relative sea level changes, palaeogeographic evolution, morphotectonics and palaeo-earthquakes.

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Context

Audience

This field activity is an undergraduate required fieldtrip in the course of Geomorphology, but we have used the same fieldtrip for Master students by adding more field activities and techniques (e.g. coring, real-time mapping using ArcGIS Collector, DGPS mapping, Drones-RTK).

Skills and concepts that students must have mastered

Students should be familiar with the basic concepts of geomorphology.

How the activity is situated in the course

It is a stand-alone fieldtrip, taking place usually towards the end of the semester. It may also take place during an intensive training school with similar topics adding more activities, such as coring demonstration, sampling for OSL dating, DGPS mapping, the use of Drones, Real-time mapping using ArcGIS Collector).

Activity Length

The duration of this fieldtrip is approximately 2 days.

Goals

Content/concepts goals for this activity

The goal of this activity is for students to have a better understanding of geomorphology, to apply in the field what they have been taught in the classroom and to understand the importance of multidisciplinary approaches, e.g. coastal geomorphology, tectonics and archaeology.
The content of this activity includes archaeological sea level indicators, such as harbors and fish tanks, and geomorphological sea level indicators, such as tidal notches and beachrocks.

Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity

After the completion of this activity students should have acquired skills on analytical thinking, analyzing coastal field data, interpreting coastal features, evaluating the evolution of coastal areas, combining different data (e.g. archaeological and geomorphological).

Other skills goals for this activity

  • Mapping using new technologies
  • Teamwork for the mapping exercise
  • Health and safety as it involved walking at rough terrain and climbing
  • Time management to fulfil the exercise at the given timeframe

Description and Teaching Materials

This educational includes a virtual fieldtrip and a corresponding guide, which can be used in combination so that students are fully acquainted with the study sites.
To visit our virtual fieldtrip, follow this link.

To view and download the detailed fieldtrip guide, click here.

Technology Needs

No particular technology is necessary for this activity.

Assessment

The assessment of students is achieved through a questionnaire they must fill in at the end of the activity and the delivery of a small coastal geomorphological map from one of the visited sites.



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