A huge and diverse technical program plus easy and close accessibility to some of the earth's most spectacular displays of geology provide the setting for this year's AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition.
The 2015 ACE will be held May 31-June 3 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver.
It is the ninth time AAPG has traveled to Denver for an annual convention - ACE was last held there in 2009 - but organizers say this may be the best time ever to head for the mountains.
"The changing global economy, new technologies, recent discoveries and international events are constantly changing the energy landscape, but for most of us the driving force is a passion for the science," said ACE general chair John Robinson.
"Exploration and production activity in the greater Rocky Mountain region is emblematic of these new paradigms in our science, making Denver the ideal city to host this meeting," he said.
"There's no better time to invest in your professional future than now."
This year's technical program will feature more than 800 presentations that address a broad range of topics, including Petroleum Systems and Geochemistry; Unconventional Resources; Carbonates and Evaporites; Siliciclastics; Geophysics; Energy Minerals; and Structure and Geomechanics.
There also will be several special sessions, including two Discovery Thinking sessions (see pages 50 and 52), a "celebration" of Sidney Powers medalist Paul "Mitch" Harris; and an important "town hall" style meeting on "The Department of Energy Crosscutting Subsurface Initiative: Adaptive Control of Subsurface Fractures and Flow."
Another new feature in Denver will be the "GeoLegends Theater," a three-day program that offers the premiere showing of 13 videos that celebrate some of the greatest discoveries in the profession's history, told by the geologists who helped make it happen.
The videos, produced by AAPG and the 100th Anniversary Committee, have been created to celebrate and promote AAPG's centennial in 2017 and feature committee chairs Ed Dolly and Paul Weimer talking to top explorers, research geologists and professors who pioneered geology and exploration during the past 60 years.
Those featured include Sidney Powers Memorial Award medalists Bob Weimer, Ken Glennie and Fred Meissner, plus legendary explorers Dan Steward, John Masters, Richard Stoneburner, Mike Johnson and Harry Jamison.
Other ACE highlights include:
Hundreds of feet of core from major petroleum plays will be on display at the core poster sessions.
The opening session and awards ceremony, where the best of AAPG will be honored. Among the honorees will be veteran geologist Paul "Mitch" Harris, who will receive the AAPG Sidney Powers Award, AAPG's highest honor, and Alfredo Guzman, winner of this year's Michel T. Halbouty Leadership Award.
An exhibit hall featuring more than 250 companies who will display the latest in technology, science and services.
To register or for more information, go to ace.aapg.org/2015.