Abstract Oil and gas activities in Romania cover a long time interval from antiquity until the present day. Most importantly, the year 1857 represents the starting point for industrial production in Romania when three world oil firsts were achieved: the first country with a crude oil production formally recorded in domestic and international statistics (275 tons); the first petroleum industrial refinery, located in Ploiești, with a processing capacity of 7.5 tons/day; Bucharest became the first city in the world to have public illumination, using lamp oils. After 1857, the evolution of the oil and gas industry in Romania was controlled by important historical events: World Wars I and II, the communist regime (1945–89), and the post-communist period (1990–today).

Abstract In the 1930s, Alfred Bentz, August Moos and Karl Krejci-Graf were among the most noteworthy petroleum geologists in Germany. Being scientific modernists, they systematized the search for oil, introducing modern exploration methods. All three, at some stage, worked for the German state on providing the petroleum needed by the German military during World War II. The three colleagues seem to have had an amicable relationship. They were, however, very different. Bentz was not a member of the National Socialist party but obviously lent his expertise to the regime; as did Krejci-Graf, who, although also was not a party member, was a member of the SS, whereas Moos, due to his Jewish background, was murdered in January 1945 in the concentration camp of Buchenwald. This paper endeavours to sketch the lives of the three colleagues, highlighting their relationship and the interconnectedness of contemporary moral issues with professional and scientific demands.

Abstract The siege of Petersburg and Richmond during the American Civil War in 1864–1865 provides a stellar example of how geology can affect military operations and thus the course of history. During the Union drive to take the Confederate capital, they used Virginia’s broad tidal rivers on the Atlantic Coastal Plain as supply lines for their huge army. During the siege, both sides took advantage of the unconsolidated Cenozoic sediments of the Coastal Plain to create a new style of combat—trench warfare—which would be taken to horrifying extremes in World War I. This trip visits seven sites of both historic and geological significance in the Petersburg area.

Abstract This field trip provides an overview of geological features in southwestern Missouri that are related to the American Civil War and to human culture. This includes the geology and history of the Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield (where the second important battle of the American Civil War was fought on 10 August 1861), Zágonyi’s Charge (25 October 1861), the Battle of Springfield (8 January 1863), and the gravestones and monuments of the National Cemetery in Springfield in which many of those who fought at Wilson’s Creek and other Civil War conflicts are buried. Other stops include the Springfield Underground and the quarries and facilities at what was once the town of Phenix (which, along with Carthage, Missouri, was the home of some of the largest dimension-stone quarries west of the Mississippi River); and a reconstructed mill site in Point Lookout, just south of Branson. Most of the field trip involves outcrops, quarries, and bedrock composed of the Mississippian Burlington-Keokuk limestones (undivided), providing numerous chances to examine outcrops and products made of limestone and chert.

Abstract Climate and terrain, especially stream drainage basins and topography, greatly influenced European-American settlement patterns, agricultural practices, transportation networks, and the cultural and economic development of the southern Missouri Ozarks from the early 1800s to the American Civil War (1861-1865). These also were key factors, together with land cover and natural resources, that predicated the course of military operations and tactics during the war. The same factors affected widespread partisan conflicts during the war and vigilantism during the Bald Knob-ber era, a mid-1880s cultural extension of the Civil War in Taney, Christian, Douglas, and Stone counties. This field trip will examine the geology of selected areas in and around Branson in southwestern Taney County and integrate historical events and anecdotes, which illustrate the influence of geologic factors.

Abstract The terrain of the eastern Chorwon Valley is geologically complex, controlled by spatial relationships between Precambrian metamorphic rocks, Mesozoic granite, and locally intense structural deformations within and adjacent to major faults. Fundamental controls of terrain are overprinted by cycles of deep weathering and erosion during Pleistocene sea-level fluctuations, as well as by accelerated human impacts during the twentieth century. Geological characterization, terrain analysis, and Korean War history here provide significant lessons in the use of battlefield terrain. Military access, mobility, and the orientation of attack corridors in this area are predominantly a function of major tectonic faults, and (to a lesser extent) lithology. Severely tectonized granite rock mass extends outward for 300 m to 2 km from major fault zones. Erosion of highly weathered granite in some of these zones forms elongate valleys. The easily-ripped saprolite by-products of granite weathering provide in situ construction materials (sand and gravel), soft foundations prone to boggy conditions in some areas, reasonable groundwater supplies near the fault zones, and an overall situation suitable for staging and military infrastructure. Resistant Precambrian metamorphic rocks form rugged terrain suitable for defensive positions. These hard lithologics support steep ridges and towering hills in and around the eastern Chorwon Valley in the Kumhwa vicinity. The (often) strongly magnetic character of some of the metamorphic rocks complicates the location of mines and unexploded ordnance in this sector of the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Abstract In warfare military geologists pursue five main categories of work: tactical and strategic terrain analysis, fortifications and tunneling, resource acquisition, defense installations, and field construction and logistics. In peace they train for wartime operations and may be involved in peace-keeping and nation-building exercises. Although many geologists view military geology as a branch of engineering geology, the U.S. military does not include geologists in its force structure and gets geological assistance on an ad hoc basis. The army does, however, include organic terrain teams at division and higher levels to provide routine information for mission planning and execution. The classic dilemma for military geology has been whether support can best be provided by civilian technical-matter experts or by uniformed soldiers who routinely work with the combat units.

Abstract The first recorded use of terrain analysis was in 1813 during the Napoleonic Wars, and in most major military operations since that time, geologic counsel and assessment have played important roles. Intelligent use of the terrain of the battlefield, movement of supplies and personnel, and the procurement of adequate supplies of water and of construction materials all have relied on an understanding and application of geologic principles. During the 19th century, as the value of geologic insight came to be recognized, books on military geology appeared as did basic courses in geology at military academies in the United States and abroad. Beginning in World War I, vital geologic data were placed on increasingly sophisticated specialized terrain maps and used both tactically and strategically. Successful military mining beneath enemy fortifications in World War I required an understanding of subsurface geology, including hydrogeology. And in the 1940s and 1950s, geologic principles were applied on an unprecedented scale to the construction of massive underground installations. Moreover, in the 1950s, these principles, applied in a massive research effort, resulted in the ability to distinguish the release of energy by an underground nuclear test from that produced by a natural seismic event. As weapons and defenses against them continue to evolve, geoscience and geoscientists will play an increasingly important role in military planning and operations in diverse and challenging environments worldwide.

Abstract During World War I the combatants committed the total resources of their nations in this first great total war. This came to include geological expertise. The original use of geologists on the battlefield was to locate potable water supplies; later employments were an outgrowth of the stalemate on the battlefield. Mine warfare quickly developed as the belligerents tried to tunnel under the formidable trench systems. Geologists in uniform provided assistance for these efforts and came to be valued for their professional advice. More uses were quickly found for geologists. Trafficability studies of terrain, predictions of stream and river heights, sources of construction materials, and location of water supplies were important missions. Later, as both sides learned to communicate through ground-loop telephony, ground-conductivity studies became important. By the time the United States entered the war in 1917, mine warfare had been neutralized by countermining, and no further active mine operations were undertaken. The U.S. Army sent 10 geologists (three more were en route on November 11, 1918), a mining regiment, and a water supply regiment of engineers to support the American Expeditionary Force. Most geologic work was in terrain studies and in mapping, water supply, and soil trafficability studies. In the United States, other geologists worked to discover sources of scarce raw materials. American geologists generally were disappointed, however, at the contributions they were able to make to the war effort, whether in France or America.

Abstract British geologists participated for more than a year in the planning of “Operation Overlord,” the Allied invasion of northwest France. Following D-Day on June 6, 1944, they contributed to the subsequent 11-month operational phase in western Europe, including the initial 3-month battle for Normandy. Beachhead maps were prepared prior to the invasion at 1:5,000 scale from published topographic and geologic maps, aerial photographs, and secret ground reconnaissance. They indicated the character of the beaches and cliffs, distribution of different surface sediments, and other factors likely to affect cross-beach mobility. Airfield suitability maps were made to indicate the distribution within enemy territory of candidate areas for the rapid construction of airfields. After the invasion, between June 7 and August 13, 1944, 20 airstrips, mostly 1,100–1,500 m in length, were completed in the British occupied area of Normandy. Geological information was used to guide the systematic development of road metal. Initially, weak Jurassic limestones were quarried, as at Creully; later, stronger Paleozoic quartzites were worked, as at Mouen, southwest of Caen. Stone produced by the Royal Engineers in Normandy quickly rose to a peak monthly total of more than 140,000 tonnes in August 1944. Water supply intelligence and the control of well siting and drilling were geologist's responsibilities. In 1st Corps area, about 50 water points were established, with 12 operational at any one time. Water in Normandy was obtained largely from rivers and existing wells, supplemented by 33 new boreholes. Geologists were also used to assess the effects of aerial bombing; soil conditions affecting cross-country vehicular movement; ground conditions for river crossings; and the nature of the sea floor beneath the English Channel. Normandy thus provides a case history of British military geology “par excellence.”

Abstract Steep and broken terrains of the T'aebaeksanmaek dominate east-central Korea and the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). These terrains are controlled by geologic elements, prediction of which can be used advantageously by the military commander. Narrow valleys and ridge slopes are controlled variously by trends of fault zones, major joint sets, and metamorphic foliations. The trends of these elements follow predictable patterns and have influenced the evolution of harsh, rugged terrain that complicates mechanized infantry mobility and logistic resupply. Slope-stability problems arise from weathering on both natural slopes and oversteepened road cuts. Of equal significance in terrain analysis of this region are the distributions of intrusive granite bodies and their history of weathering and erosion during the Quaternary. The granite masses commonly weather deeper and are more easily eroded than the quartzose schist and gneiss they intrude. Resistant metamorphic rocks generally form ridgelines and hill crests, whereas granite plutons characteristically form wide, bowl-shaped valleys and depressions. By an unfortunate coincidence of geology and geopolitics, many of these granite-floored features are located just north of the 38th parallel; they provided important staging grounds for the North Korean (NK) invasion of South Korea in June 1950. Severely contested high points of these terrains were won in a series of costly Allied ground operations during the summer and fall of 1951. The significance of these operations, conducted while negotiations at Panmunjon bogged down, escaped some authors of Korean War history who disagreed about whether the enormous human sacrifice needed to secure the ridges was worthwhile. Terrain analysis of this sector clearly shows that with these victories Allied forces secured the strategic high ground controlling north-south access routes and assured that the final line of demarcation would not follow the original border along the 38th parallel. The Allies seized the staging grounds from which the NK II Corps divisions had launched their invasion of the central and eastern sectors. In “elbowing” the line northward, the Allies also secured the mountainous salient that bounds the 1950 “invasion corridor” on its eastern flank. Arguably, their sacrifice bought long-term peace on the Korean Peninsula. Worthwhile indeed!

Abstract The army moves over, digs in, hides in, and builds on the land. Success in these endeavors relies on information about landform, structure, composition (rock and soil types), nature of the surface (sticky, dusty, hard, soft, etc.), and an evaluation of obstacles, engineering materials, water sources, and potential sites for ambush, defilade, and cover and concealment. Geology looms large. For many world areas, such information is not in the databases nor on maps; yet it is sometimes needed on short notice. The information can be derived from image analysis, and available imagery covers most of the world. Examples of such applications include Thule Air Base, Icecap access routes, Project Sanguine, Southeast Asia trafficability studies, and Operations Desert Shield/Storm. The Remote Sensing Field Guide — Desert , developed by a joint effort between the U.S. Army Topographic Engineering Center (TEC) and the U.S. Geological Survey, was used extensively in Operations Desert Shield/Storm in support of military operations. These materials plus spectral reflectance data are being blended into a hypermedia terrain database to support interactive image analysis between army elements.