Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Project Team Launches Website for K-12 Outreach
Website Provides Resources on the Vast Region of the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean and Northern South America

The Caribbean Basins, Tectonics, and Hydrocarbons (CBTH) Project, led by Dr. Paul Mann of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, has released a new outreach website (http://cbth.uh.edu/outreach) aimed at bridging the gap between researchers and K-12 students and teachers. The site focuses on compiling diverse resources on Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, and northern South America geology, geophysics, plate tectonics, natural hazards and mineral resources. Jeff Storms, a GIS expert working with the CBTH project, created the site.

“Many of these resources are not readily available to students at the K-12 level working on class reports, teachers seeking information for classes, or citizens planning a vacation or retirement in the area,” Mann said.

The site features maps of all types, unpublished theses and dissertations, reference lists, field trip guides, and other materials. A new page showing photographs related to geologic rock exposures in the area is under development.

The outreach site also provides regular updates on meetings and conferences in Caribbean geology across the globe and information on natural hazards in the region.
“Undergraduate students employed by the CBTH project will work to update the site with new maps and information throughout the year,” Mann said.

The CBTH project is funded by 15 oil companies most of which are based in the Houston area. The project supports 10 graduate students, six undergraduate students, two GIS experts at UH, and computer and software support. The group works on subsurface basin analysis using geologic and geophysical data from on- and offshore areas in the region of the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean and northern South America.