Source-to-Sink Sedimentary Processes Along the Active Margin of the Colombian Caribbean Coast: A Geochronology and Sedimentary Provenance Study

Acronym: S2Sink-Colombia

Funding Period: 2024–2028

Funding Organization: DAAD – German Academic Exchange Service

This doctoral project investigates sedimentary connectivity along the active margin of the northern Colombian Caribbean, focusing on two contrasting deep-marine systems: the Magdalena Submarine Delta and La Aguja Submarine Canyon. 

The samples analyzed in this research were collected during the MSM112 research cruise aboard the German vessel Maria S. Merian, conducted under the German-Colombian collaborative project “The ROFI System of the Magdalena Delta: Land-Sea Interaction of the Main Tributary of the Caribbean Sea”, funded by the German Research Foundation. During the expedition (October–November 2022), thirty-nine (39) surface sediment samples were obtained using a Giant Box Corer from depths between 48 and 3838 meters; a subset of 25 samples is used in this study. 

Through the integration of granulometric, mineralogical, and geochronological data—including U-Pb and trace element analysis of detrital zircon—the project aims to reconstruct sediment transport pathways, identify sediment provenance, and evaluate the role of tectonic and geomorphological controls on sediment distribution in deep-marine settings of the Colombian Caribbean margin. The results will enhance understanding of sediment routing along convergent margins and provide new insights into the geological and geodynamic evolution of this region. 

PhD Student: Estefany Villanueva-Garcia

Main Advisor: Yamirka Rojas-Agramonte

Co-supervisor: Christian Winter (Kiel University)