Professor Roderick Brown

  • Professor of Earth Sciences (School of Geographical & Earth Sciences)

telephone: 01413305460
email: Roderick.Brown@glasgow.ac.uk

Research interests

South Atlantic  fission tracks image of UKSouthern Africa Relief Ganges  

 

 

Low-Temperature Thermochronology

Developing and designing new applications of the analytical methods of Fission Track Analysis and U-Th/He Analysis of accessory minerals to constrain tectonic and geomorphic processes. Specific areas of interest include applications to understanding long-term landscape evolution, determining erosion rates and sediment yields over geological time scales and understanding the role of tectonics, climate and eustasy in controling rates of long-term landscape change.

Terrestrial Cosmogenic Nuclides

Developing methods and strategies for integrating in-situ produced cosmogenic nuclide abundance measurements on surface mineral samples with low-temperature thermochronologic data to constrain rates of landscape forming processes over geologically relevant time scales.

Geodynamics & Landscape Evolution

Investigating the coupling between deep Earth processes (like mantle convection) and the generation and evolution of large scale topography.

Remote Sensing & Digital Geoscience

Developing new strategies and methods for using high resolution satellite derived data sets (such as multi & hyperspectral surface reflectance data and digital elevation data) to measure and visualise the Earth's surface topography with the aim of improving understanding of the processes responsible for controlling its morphology and evolution.

Augrabies Gorge Orange River South Africa
Augrabies Gorge, Orange River, South Africa

ASTER VNIR Image (321RGB) draped over a 30m resolution digital elevation model of the landscape derived from the nadir and backward looking IR image pair (ASTER Band 3N and 3B) (Top=East). Note the strong structural control on the morphology of the gorge (alignment of main channel with dominant fracture/joint orientations). The tributary draining to the Orange River from the north (i.e. left hand side) is the Molopo River.

Brandberg and Messum Crater in Namibia Brandberg and Messum Crater, Namibia

Landsat 742RGB Image of Brandberg and Messum Crater, both features are early Cretaceous alkali-granite ring complexes which intrude deformed Pan African (~500Ma) age metamorphic rocks of the Damara Orogen (Top=North).

Amis Valley
Amis Valley, Brandberg, Namibia

Photograph looking west-northwest showing remnants of Karoo (Permo-Triassic) volcano-sedimentary strata dipping gently to the north and into the ring fault marking the caldera structure of the Early Cretaceous Brandberg alkali-granite ring complex as shown in the satellite image above (Photograph: Roderick Brown).

The image below combines two different digital data sets (seasat marine gravity data and 1km resolution digital elevation data) to represent the topography of the African continent and the tectonic fabric within the surrounding ocean basins.

Large scale morphotectonic setting of the African continent
Large scale morphotectonic setting of the African continent

Image created with ERMapper using the GTOPO30 digital elevation data combined with marine gravity data from Sandwell and Smith (1997).

Sandwell, D. T., W. H. F. Smith, Marine gravity anomaly from Geosat and ERS 1 satellite altimetry, Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 102, No. B5, p. 10039-10054, 1997.

Current research

Resolving the age of the first order topography of Africa

This project is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) for 2010-2013.

Objectives: The primary objective of this project is to test the following hypothesis;

Hypothesis: The first-order topography of Africa is younger than 30 million years old, which will resolve a long standing debate concerning the origin and age of the first-order topography of Africa. The resulting data will also provide detailed information relevant to the discussion concerning how large passive continental margin escarpments form by providing detailed quantitative estimates of the pattern and amount of erosion across the continental margin.

This objective will be achieved by;

1) Determining a high quality suite of AFT and AHe ages from 6 deep bore holes augmented by surface samples (total of c. 105 AFT and AHe analyses).

2) Determining robust, quantitative constraints on the timing, rate and magnitude of erosion that created the present escarpment in southern Africa by using a new technique enabling the joint inversion of both the AFT and AHe data to simultaneously obtain the thermal history and an estimate of the palaeothermal-gradient from a complete suite of bore hole samples.


Selected publications


Grants

Prof Roderick Brown, Dr Cristina Persano, Dr Fin Stuart (SUERC). 2010-2013. Resolving the age of the first order topography of Africa, £513,000, (Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Grant Number NE/H008276/1). Co-investigators; Prof Kerry Gallagher, Géosciences Rennes, Université de Rennes 1, France.

A/Prof BP Kohn Prof AJ Gleadow Prof RW Brown Mr KG Osadetz. 2005-2007. From crystal to craton: unravelling the low-temperature thermal evolution and long-term stability of cratonic lithosphere, £113,000, (Australian Research Council Discovery Project DP0556642). Co-Investigators: BP Kohn, AJW Gleadow (University of Melbourne), KG Osadetz (Canadian Geological Survey).

Prof AJ Gleadow A/Prof BP Kohn Prof RW Brown Dr JM Fletcher Prof F Chemale Jr. 2006-2008. Reconstructing the morphotectonic evolution of rifted continental margins from low-temperature thermochronology, £130,000 (Australian Research Council Discovery Project DP0665127). Co-Investigators: Prof AJ Gleadow Dr BP Kohn (University of Melbourne), JM Fletcher (CICESE, Mexico), Prof F Chemale Jr. (Rio Grande do Sul University, UFRGS, Brazil).

Prof AJ Gleadow Dr BP Kohn Dr RW Brown Dr JM Fletcher. 2003-2005. Integrated Chronologies and Dynamics of Continental Extension, £120,000 (Australian Research Council Discovery Project DP0345931). Co-Investigators: Prof AJ Gleadow Dr BP Kohn (University of Melbourne), JM Fletcher (CICESE, Mexico).

Prof AJ Gleadow Dr BP Kohn Dr RW Brown Mr MS Krochmal. 2003-2006. Developing a fully automated analytical system for the next generation of fission-track thermochronology, £150,000 (Australian Research Council Linkage Project LP0348767). Co-Investigators: Prof AJ Gleadow Dr BP Kohn (University of Melbourne), MS Krochmal (Autoscan Systems Pty Ltd).

 


All publications

List by: Type | Date

Jump to: 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2011 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
Number of items: 31.

2019

Wildman, M., Webster, D., Brown, R., Chardon, D., Rouby, D., Ye, J., Huyghe, D. and Dall'Asta, M. (2019) Long-term evolution of the West African transform margin: estimates of denudation from Benin using apatite thermochronology. Journal of the Geological Society, 176(1), pp. 97-114. (doi:10.1144/jgs2018-078)

2018

Jess, S., Stephenson, R. and Brown, R. (2018) Evolution of the central West Greenland margin and the Nuussuaq Basin: localised basin uplift along a stable continental margin proposed from thermochronological data. Basin Research, 30(6), pp. 1230-1246. (doi:10.1111/bre.12301)

2017

Feng, L.-X., Brown, R. W., Han, B.-F., Wang, Z.-Z., Łuszczak, K., Liu, B., Zhang, Z.-C. and Ji, J.-Q. (2017) Thrusting and exhumation of the southern Mongolian Plateau: Joint thermochronological constraints from the Langshan Mountains, western Inner Mongolia, China. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 144, pp. 287-302. (doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2017.01.001)

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Persano, C., Beucher, R., Stuart, F. M. , Mackintosh, V., Gallagher, K., Schwanethal, J. and Carter, A. (2017) Contrasting Mesozoic evolution across the boundary between on and off craton regions of the South African plateau inferred from apatite fission track and (U-Th-Sm)/He thermochronology. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 122(2), pp. 1517-1547. (doi:10.1002/2016JB013478)

2016

Kasanzu, C. H., Linol, B., de Wit, M. J., Brown, R., Persano, C. and Stuart, F. M. (2016) From source to sink in central Gondwana: Exhumation of the Precambrian basement rocks of Tanzania and sediment accumulation in the adjacent Congo basin. Tectonics, 35(9), pp. 2034-2051. (doi:10.1002/2016TC004147)

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Beucher, R., Persano, C., Stuart, F. , Gallagher, K., Schwanethal, J. and Carter, A. (2016) The chronology and tectonic style of landscape evolution along the elevated Atlantic continental margin of South Africa resolved by joint apatite fission track and (U-Th-Sm)/He thermochronology. Tectonics, 35(3), pp. 511-545. (doi:10.1002/2015TC004042)

2015

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Watkins, R., Carter, A., Gleadow, A. and Summerfield, M. (2015) Post break-up tectonic inversion across the southwestern cape of South Africa: new insights from apatite and zircon fission track thermochronometry. Tectonophysics, 654, pp. 30-55. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2015.04.012)

2014

Brown, R., Summerfield, M., Gleadow, A., Gallagher, K., Carter, A., Beucher, R. and Wildman, M. (2014) Intracontinental deformation in southern Africa during the late Cretaceous. Journal of African Earth Sciences, 100, pp. 20-41. (doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2014.05.014)

Chang, J., Brown, R. W., Yuan, W., Li, W., Que, Y. and Qiu, N. (2014) Mesozoic cooling history of the 'Bachu uplift' in the Tarim Basin, China: constraints from zircon fission-track thermochronology. Radiation Measurements, 67, pp. 5-14. (doi:10.1016/j.radmeas.2014.05.019)

2013

Brown, R.W., Beucher, R., Roper, S. , Persano, C., Stuart, F. and Fitzgerald, P. (2013) Natural age dispersion arising from the analysis of broken crystals, part I. Theoretical basis and implications for the apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometer. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 122, pp. 478-497. (doi:10.1016/j.gca.2013.05.041)

Beucher, R., Brown, R. W., Roper, S. , Stuart, F. and Persano, C. (2013) Natural age dispersion arising from the analysis of broken crystals, part II. Practical application to apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 120, pp. 395-416. (doi:10.1016/j.gca.2013.05.042)

2011

Kong, P., Na, C., Brown, R., Fabel, D. , Freeman, S. , Xiao, W. and Wang, Y. (2011) Cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al dating of paleolake shorelines in Tibet. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 41(3), pp. 263-273. (doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2011.02.016)

2009

Brown, R. (2009) Observing the present and considering the past to ponder the future. South African Journal of Science, 105(1-2), pp. 13-14.

Gleadow, A.J.W., Gleadow, S.J., Belton, D.X., Kohn, B.P., Krochmal, M.S. and Brown, R.W. (2009) Coincidence mapping - a key strategy for the automatic counting of fission tracks in natural minerals. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 324(1), pp. 25-36. (doi:10.1144/SP324.2)

2008

Tinker, J., de Wit, M. and Brown, R. (2008) Linking source and sink: evaluating the balance between onshore erosion and offshore sediment accumulation since Gondwana break-up, South Africa. Tectonophysics, 455(1-4), pp. 94-103. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2007.11.040)

Tinker, J., de Wit, M. and Brown, R. (2008) Mesozoic exhumation of the southern Cape, South Africa, quantified using apatite fission track thermochronology. Tectonophysics, 455(1-4), pp. 77-93. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2007.10.009)

2007

Kong, P., Fabel, D. , Brown, R. and Freeman, S. (2007) Cosmic-ray exposure age of Martian meteorite GRV 99027. Science in China Series D-Earth Sciences, 50, pp. 1521-1524. (doi:10.1007/s11430-007-0089-6)

2006

Fink, D., McKelvey, B., Hambrey, M., Fabel, D. and Brown, R. (2006) Pleistocene deglaciation chronology of the Amery Oasis and Radok Lake, northern Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 243, pp. 229-243. (doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.12.006)

2005

Gallagher, K., Stephenson, J., Brown, R., Holmes, C. and Fitzgerald, P. (2005) Low temperature thermochronology and modeling strategies for multiple samples 1: Vertical profiles. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 237, pp. 193-208. (doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.06.025)

Gallagher, K., Stephenson, J., Brown, R., Holmes, C. and Ballester, P. (2005) Exploiting 3D spatial sampling in inverse modeling of thermochronological data. Low-Temperature Thermochronology, 58, pp. 375-387.

Kohn, B.P., Gleadow, A.J.W., Brown, R.W., Gallagher, K., Lorencak, M. and Noble, W.P. (2005) Visualizing thermotectonic and denudation histories using apatite fission track thermochronology. Low-Temperature Thermochronology, 58, pp. 527-565.

Raab, M., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., Weber, K. and Gleadow, A. (2005) Denudational and thermal history of the Early Cretaceous Brandberg and Okenyenya igneous complexes on Namibia's Atlantic passive margin. Tectonics, 24, (doi:10.1029/2004TC001688,)

2004

Brown, R. (2004) Quantitative resolution of the debate over antiquity of the central Australian landscape: implications for the tectonic and geomorphic stability of cratonic interiors. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 219(01-Feb), pp. 21-34.

Brown, R. (2004) Sediment supply to the Gippsland Basin from thermal history analysis: constraints on Emperor-Golden Beach Reservoir Composition. Austrailan Petroleum Porduction and Exploration Journal, 44, pp. 397-416.

2003

Lisker, F., Brown, R. and Fabel, D. (2003) Denudational and thermal history along a transect across the Lambert Graben, northern Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica, derived from apatite fission track thermochronology. Tectonics, 22(5), 1055. (doi:10.1029/2002TC001477)

2002

Brown, R., Summerfield, M.A. and Gleadow, A.J.W. (2002) Denudational history along a transect across the Drakensberg Escarpment of southern Africa derived from apatite fission track thermochronology. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 107, (doi:10.1029/2001JB000745)

Brown, R. (2002) Fission track thermotectonic imaging of the Australian continent. Tectonophysics, 349(01-Apr), pp. 5-21.

Brown, R. (2002) Modeling postbreakup landscape development and denudational history across the southeast African (Drakensberg Escarpment) margin. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107(B12), p. 2351.

Brown, R. (2002) Sampling strategy is important for producing weed maps: a case study using kriging. Weed Science, 50(4), pp. 542-546.

Kohn, B., Gleadow, A., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., OSullivan, P. and Foster, D. (2002) Shaping the Australian crust over the last 300 million years: insights from fission track thermotectonic imaging and denudation studies of key terranes. Australian Journal of Earth Sciences, 49, pp. 697-717.

Raab, M., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., Carter, A. and Weber, K. (2002) Late Cretaceous reactivation of major crustal shear zones in northern Namibia: constraints from apatite fission track analysis. Tectonophysics, 349, pp. 75-92.

This list was generated on Tue Jul 23 13:40:06 2019 BST.
Jump to: Articles
Number of items: 31.

Articles

Wildman, M., Webster, D., Brown, R., Chardon, D., Rouby, D., Ye, J., Huyghe, D. and Dall'Asta, M. (2019) Long-term evolution of the West African transform margin: estimates of denudation from Benin using apatite thermochronology. Journal of the Geological Society, 176(1), pp. 97-114. (doi:10.1144/jgs2018-078)

Jess, S., Stephenson, R. and Brown, R. (2018) Evolution of the central West Greenland margin and the Nuussuaq Basin: localised basin uplift along a stable continental margin proposed from thermochronological data. Basin Research, 30(6), pp. 1230-1246. (doi:10.1111/bre.12301)

Feng, L.-X., Brown, R. W., Han, B.-F., Wang, Z.-Z., Łuszczak, K., Liu, B., Zhang, Z.-C. and Ji, J.-Q. (2017) Thrusting and exhumation of the southern Mongolian Plateau: Joint thermochronological constraints from the Langshan Mountains, western Inner Mongolia, China. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 144, pp. 287-302. (doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2017.01.001)

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Persano, C., Beucher, R., Stuart, F. M. , Mackintosh, V., Gallagher, K., Schwanethal, J. and Carter, A. (2017) Contrasting Mesozoic evolution across the boundary between on and off craton regions of the South African plateau inferred from apatite fission track and (U-Th-Sm)/He thermochronology. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 122(2), pp. 1517-1547. (doi:10.1002/2016JB013478)

Kasanzu, C. H., Linol, B., de Wit, M. J., Brown, R., Persano, C. and Stuart, F. M. (2016) From source to sink in central Gondwana: Exhumation of the Precambrian basement rocks of Tanzania and sediment accumulation in the adjacent Congo basin. Tectonics, 35(9), pp. 2034-2051. (doi:10.1002/2016TC004147)

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Beucher, R., Persano, C., Stuart, F. , Gallagher, K., Schwanethal, J. and Carter, A. (2016) The chronology and tectonic style of landscape evolution along the elevated Atlantic continental margin of South Africa resolved by joint apatite fission track and (U-Th-Sm)/He thermochronology. Tectonics, 35(3), pp. 511-545. (doi:10.1002/2015TC004042)

Wildman, M., Brown, R., Watkins, R., Carter, A., Gleadow, A. and Summerfield, M. (2015) Post break-up tectonic inversion across the southwestern cape of South Africa: new insights from apatite and zircon fission track thermochronometry. Tectonophysics, 654, pp. 30-55. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2015.04.012)

Brown, R., Summerfield, M., Gleadow, A., Gallagher, K., Carter, A., Beucher, R. and Wildman, M. (2014) Intracontinental deformation in southern Africa during the late Cretaceous. Journal of African Earth Sciences, 100, pp. 20-41. (doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2014.05.014)

Chang, J., Brown, R. W., Yuan, W., Li, W., Que, Y. and Qiu, N. (2014) Mesozoic cooling history of the 'Bachu uplift' in the Tarim Basin, China: constraints from zircon fission-track thermochronology. Radiation Measurements, 67, pp. 5-14. (doi:10.1016/j.radmeas.2014.05.019)

Brown, R.W., Beucher, R., Roper, S. , Persano, C., Stuart, F. and Fitzgerald, P. (2013) Natural age dispersion arising from the analysis of broken crystals, part I. Theoretical basis and implications for the apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometer. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 122, pp. 478-497. (doi:10.1016/j.gca.2013.05.041)

Beucher, R., Brown, R. W., Roper, S. , Stuart, F. and Persano, C. (2013) Natural age dispersion arising from the analysis of broken crystals, part II. Practical application to apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 120, pp. 395-416. (doi:10.1016/j.gca.2013.05.042)

Kong, P., Na, C., Brown, R., Fabel, D. , Freeman, S. , Xiao, W. and Wang, Y. (2011) Cosmogenic 10Be and 26Al dating of paleolake shorelines in Tibet. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 41(3), pp. 263-273. (doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2011.02.016)

Brown, R. (2009) Observing the present and considering the past to ponder the future. South African Journal of Science, 105(1-2), pp. 13-14.

Gleadow, A.J.W., Gleadow, S.J., Belton, D.X., Kohn, B.P., Krochmal, M.S. and Brown, R.W. (2009) Coincidence mapping - a key strategy for the automatic counting of fission tracks in natural minerals. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 324(1), pp. 25-36. (doi:10.1144/SP324.2)

Tinker, J., de Wit, M. and Brown, R. (2008) Linking source and sink: evaluating the balance between onshore erosion and offshore sediment accumulation since Gondwana break-up, South Africa. Tectonophysics, 455(1-4), pp. 94-103. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2007.11.040)

Tinker, J., de Wit, M. and Brown, R. (2008) Mesozoic exhumation of the southern Cape, South Africa, quantified using apatite fission track thermochronology. Tectonophysics, 455(1-4), pp. 77-93. (doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2007.10.009)

Kong, P., Fabel, D. , Brown, R. and Freeman, S. (2007) Cosmic-ray exposure age of Martian meteorite GRV 99027. Science in China Series D-Earth Sciences, 50, pp. 1521-1524. (doi:10.1007/s11430-007-0089-6)

Fink, D., McKelvey, B., Hambrey, M., Fabel, D. and Brown, R. (2006) Pleistocene deglaciation chronology of the Amery Oasis and Radok Lake, northern Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 243, pp. 229-243. (doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.12.006)

Gallagher, K., Stephenson, J., Brown, R., Holmes, C. and Fitzgerald, P. (2005) Low temperature thermochronology and modeling strategies for multiple samples 1: Vertical profiles. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 237, pp. 193-208. (doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.06.025)

Gallagher, K., Stephenson, J., Brown, R., Holmes, C. and Ballester, P. (2005) Exploiting 3D spatial sampling in inverse modeling of thermochronological data. Low-Temperature Thermochronology, 58, pp. 375-387.

Kohn, B.P., Gleadow, A.J.W., Brown, R.W., Gallagher, K., Lorencak, M. and Noble, W.P. (2005) Visualizing thermotectonic and denudation histories using apatite fission track thermochronology. Low-Temperature Thermochronology, 58, pp. 527-565.

Raab, M., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., Weber, K. and Gleadow, A. (2005) Denudational and thermal history of the Early Cretaceous Brandberg and Okenyenya igneous complexes on Namibia's Atlantic passive margin. Tectonics, 24, (doi:10.1029/2004TC001688,)

Brown, R. (2004) Quantitative resolution of the debate over antiquity of the central Australian landscape: implications for the tectonic and geomorphic stability of cratonic interiors. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 219(01-Feb), pp. 21-34.

Brown, R. (2004) Sediment supply to the Gippsland Basin from thermal history analysis: constraints on Emperor-Golden Beach Reservoir Composition. Austrailan Petroleum Porduction and Exploration Journal, 44, pp. 397-416.

Lisker, F., Brown, R. and Fabel, D. (2003) Denudational and thermal history along a transect across the Lambert Graben, northern Prince Charles Mountains, Antarctica, derived from apatite fission track thermochronology. Tectonics, 22(5), 1055. (doi:10.1029/2002TC001477)

Brown, R., Summerfield, M.A. and Gleadow, A.J.W. (2002) Denudational history along a transect across the Drakensberg Escarpment of southern Africa derived from apatite fission track thermochronology. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 107, (doi:10.1029/2001JB000745)

Brown, R. (2002) Fission track thermotectonic imaging of the Australian continent. Tectonophysics, 349(01-Apr), pp. 5-21.

Brown, R. (2002) Modeling postbreakup landscape development and denudational history across the southeast African (Drakensberg Escarpment) margin. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107(B12), p. 2351.

Brown, R. (2002) Sampling strategy is important for producing weed maps: a case study using kriging. Weed Science, 50(4), pp. 542-546.

Kohn, B., Gleadow, A., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., OSullivan, P. and Foster, D. (2002) Shaping the Australian crust over the last 300 million years: insights from fission track thermotectonic imaging and denudation studies of key terranes. Australian Journal of Earth Sciences, 49, pp. 697-717.

Raab, M., Brown, R., Gallagher, K., Carter, A. and Weber, K. (2002) Late Cretaceous reactivation of major crustal shear zones in northern Namibia: constraints from apatite fission track analysis. Tectonophysics, 349, pp. 75-92.

This list was generated on Tue Jul 23 13:40:06 2019 BST.


Roderick Brown

505b Level 5, Ges, Gregory Building, Glasgow G12 8QQ,