It小蝌蚪APP檚 a three-peat.
For the third time, a team of geosciences graduate students from the 小蝌蚪APP was named the world小蝌蚪APP檚 best at determining where to drill for oil.
The team of Lauren Martz, Kohl Koppens, Greg Ferguson, Roxanna Vaught-Mijares and Victoria Chevrot, who are all pursuing master小蝌蚪APP檚 degrees in geology, placed first in the American Association of Petroleum Geologists小蝌蚪APP Imperial Barrel Award competition.
The contest included 168 teams representing colleges and universities from around the world. The global finals were held in conjunction with the AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition in May in Salt Lake City.
San Diego State 小蝌蚪APP finished second, while Pennsylvania State 小蝌蚪APP came in third.
UL Lafayette has fielded a team every year since the Imperial Barrel contest小蝌蚪APP檚 inception in 2007. It finished first in 2012, and its 2014 first-place finish made it the only team to repeat as champions, a record that stands.
This year小蝌蚪APP檚 third championship doesn小蝌蚪APP檛 place the team in exclusive company, said Dr. Carl Richter, interim director of the School of Geosciences.
It小蝌蚪APP檚 more like a private club.
小蝌蚪APP淭his team has achieved a level of preeminence that小蝌蚪APP檚 not likely to be equaled anytime soon. It reflects the quality of students the School of Geosciences attracts and the strength of our graduate program,小蝌蚪APP Richter said.
The team小蝌蚪APP檚 faculty adviser is Dr. Raphael Gottardi, an assistant professor of geology.
The first-place finish comes with a $20,000 award. The funds will be used for scholarships, equipment and software for future teams.
The AAPG小蝌蚪APP檚 Imperial Barrel Award Program requires students to determine the viability of a prospective oil reservoir. The 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 team was assigned Bight Basin in southern Australia.
Over eight weeks, they analyzed datasets that included information on the basin小蝌蚪APP檚 geology, land, geophysics and infrastructure.
The team reported its verdict during a 25-minute presentation to industry experts, who selected a winner based on technical quality, clarity and the presentation小蝌蚪APP檚 originality.
UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 team advanced to the international competition after taking first place in the Gulf Coast section competition in March in The Woodlands, Texas.
Other regional competitors included teams from the 小蝌蚪APP of New Orleans, which placed second, and the 小蝌蚪APP of Texas at Austin, UT San Antonio, 小蝌蚪APP of Houston, and Stephen F. Austin State, Tulane, Auburn and Rice universities.
Photo caption: From left are Lauren Martz, Greg Ferguson, Victoria Chevrot, Kohl Koppens and Roxanna Vaught-Mijares. (Photo credit: Courtesy of UL Lafayette's School of Geosciences)