Wireline Coring Drowned Reefs Offshore the Virgin Islands: Sea Level, Sea Surface Temperature and Radiocarbon Calibration

The PI plans to core offshore the British Virgin Islands (BVI) on drowned reefs for sealevel change and sea surface temperature records. This will extend the Caribbean record from 20 k.yrs. to 60 k.yrs. and extend the Carbon 14 calibration to 40 k.yrs. BP Wireline coring offshore BVI will also replicate and fill in important gaps in the Barbados records. A lifeboat capable of wireline coring in water depths of up to 100 m and cores of up to 200 m length has been designed and developed with institutional funds. A Plasma 54 mass spectrometer, capable of rapid analyses of elements and isotopes, will be used for decipher the coral record.