January 17, 2023
Senior Field Geologist Dan Koning received the nation’s premiere geologic mapping award at the Geological Society of America’s 2022 annual meeting in Denver. The Florence Bascom Geologic Mapping Award acknowledges contributions in published, high-quality, geologic maps that led the recipient to publish significant new scientific or economic-resource discoveries and to contribute greater understanding of fundamental geologic processes and concepts.
The award was made based on Dan’s career of successfully integrating field-based studies with multi-disciplinary datasets to interpret tectonic and paleoclimatic controls on basin sedimentation, surface erosion, depositional facies, and unconformities. Through 25 years of service, Dan has become an expert in the stratigraphy, sedimentology, tectonic and soil geomorphology, geologic hazards, and hydrogeology of the Rio Grande rift. He is first author of 25 geologic quad maps, junior author on another 20 maps, and as first author of two compilation maps. His maps, cross sections, and interpretations have provided the foundation for a vastly increased understanding of the architecture and evolution of the rift and the development of the Rio Grande.