As part of a joint ASE-UNP (Indonesia) effort, a geophysical survey of lakes Maninjau, Diatas and Kerinci in West Sumatra and Jambi using a Sub-Bottom Profiler was conducted in April-May 2018. Lake sediments are fantastic archives of geological processes (floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes) and environmental change (climate change and change in land use). Volcanic ash can travel far and forms well-preserved tephra layers in quiet, low-energy sedimentary environments such as lakes. Long term hydrological variations are also recorded with changes in sedimentology, geochemistry and biological proxies. The thickness and distribution of lake sediments can be inferred from acoustic imaging such as with a CHIRP or sub-bottom profiler (SBP). Analyzing this data can thus inform about a lake’s potential as an environmental archive as well as highlight major events (e.g. landslides, tectonic faulting) that are recorded in the lake sediments. The processing and analysis of SBP data is fundamental to complement the analysis of lake cores.

The goal of this project is to interpret the SBP data in order to provide (1) a framework for the selection of lake coring sites, (2) a context for the analysis of lake sediments, (3) knowledge about the occurrence of natural hazards such as landslides, earthquakes and faulting in the region, (4) potentially inform paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental change.

Leading PI: Dr. Caroline Bouvet De La Maisonneuve (EOS, Singapore).