Jill VanTongeren, a graduate student at Columbia University, and petrology curator Ed Mathez are currently at work trying to understand the evolution of the upper portions of the Bushveld Complex.
Using a detailed sample collection of Upper Zone and overlying Rooiberg roof rock collected in 2006 and 2007, they are trying to determine the quantity and composition of the "missing" Bushveld magma. This research involves detailed analytical work using the AMNH electron microprobe lab and the LDEO-AMNH joint laser ablation ICP-MS facility housed at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.