R. Damian Nance

My research interests center on the application of plate tectonics to ancient mountain belts and the role of supercontinents in Earth’s geodynamic evolution. The research is often field-based and involves the application of structural analysis, petrology, geochemistry, geochronology and isotopic studies to orogenic processes, plate reconstructions, continental configurations and the assembly and breakup of supercontinents. Past projects include studies of the Rheic Ocean and its role in the assembly of Pangea, the Acatlán Complex in southern Mexico and the Avalonian-Cadomian belt in the northern Appalachians and western Europe and their role in Neoproterozoic-Paleozoic continental reconstructions, and the supercontinent cycle and its role in Earth’s long-term tectonic, geochemical, climatic and biological history.