The University of Maine at Presque Isle Lunchtime Science Seminar series will host a talk by Dr. Chunzeng Wang, UMPI Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, on Tuesday, Nov. 29, 12:30-1:30 p.m., in Folsom Hall 201 (the GIS Lab).
Titled Discovery of the Pennington Mountain REE-Nb-Zr Deposit: What? How? Why?, Dr. Wang’s talk will focus on recent bedrock mapping and research and how it has led to a rewriting of the geologic history of the northern Maine Appalachians as well as the discovery of a deposit of rare earth elements and trace elements. This talk is free and open to the public.
The Lunchtime Science Seminar Series, now in its ninth year, fosters greater collaboration and more informative communication between UMPI—especially its students—and the greater northern Maine region. The purpose of the series is to bring the University, working professionals, and community members together by collaborating on ideas and experiments through scientific discoveries.
Dr. Wang’s field work and research in northern Maine has led to important discoveries around new rock formations and significant changes in stratigraphic, structural, and tectonic patterns. It is his work in connection with the recently discovered deposit of rare earth elements and trace elements that will serve as the focal point of his seminar. Dr. Wang was featured in a national news release from the U.S. Geological Survey about the discovery of critical mineral resources in northern Maine. He is also lead author on a publication in Economic Geology about the discovery.
His talk will answer questions such as what the REE-Nb-Zr deposit is, how it was discovered, and why it matters. Dr. Wang’s geologic research in northern Maine has been funded by the U.S. Geological Survey and Maine Geological Survey consecutively since 2016. For more information about this seminar, contact Dr. Jason Johnston at 207-768-9652 or jason.johnston@maine.edu.