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Interior of the Earth

Gordon Research Conference

June 10 - 15, 2007
Chair Goran Ekstrom
Vice Chair Bruce Buffett
Mount Holyoke College
50 College Street
South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States
 Venue and Travel Information

Conference Description

The focus of the 2007 Conference is the shallow mantle, with an emphasis on the interaction between the lithosphere, asthenosphere, and the deeper mantle. Six of the scientific sessions discuss the structure and evolution of continental and oceanic lithosphere, the nature of the asthenosphere and the transition zone, and the subduction process. One session is focused on elastic anisotropy in the shallow mantle and its relevance for mantle dynamics, and one session addresses the Earth's dynamic response to loading on multiple time scales.

Conference Program

SUNDAY
2:00 pm - 11:00 pmArrival and Check-in
6:00 pmDinner
7:30 pm - 7:40 pmWelcome / Introductory Comments by GRC Site Staff
7:40 pm - 9:30 pm THE CONTINENTAL LITHOSPHERE: WHERE DID IT COME FROM, WHERE DOES IT GO?
Discussion Leader: Roberta Rudnick (University of Maryland)
7:40 pm - 8:25 pmPeter Kelemen (Columbia University)
"Genesis of Arc(hean) cratonic upper mantle and continental crust"
8:25 pm - 8:35 pmDiscussion
8:35 pm - 9:20 pmAdrian Lenardic (Rice University)
"The eventful birth, long boring life, and potential liquid induced demise of cratonic lithosphere"
9:20 pm - 9:30 pmDiscussion
MONDAY
7:30 am - 8:30 amBreakfast
8:45 amGroup Photo
9:00 am - 12:30 pm THE ASTHENOSPHERE I - WHAT IS THE ASTHENOSPHERE?
Discussion Leader: Stan Hart (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
9:00 am - 9:50 amGreg Hirth (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
"Laboratory constraints on the origin of the asthenosphere"
9:50 am - 10:00 amDiscussion
10:00 amCoffee Break
10:30 am - 11:20 amLars Stixrude (University of Michigan)
"Is the asthenosphere partially molten"
11:20 am - 11:30 am Discussion
11:30 am - 12:20 pmShijie Zhong (University of Colorado)
"Bathymetry and dynamic evolution of oceanic lithosphere - a consequence of sublithosphere small-scale convection or plumes"
12:20 pm - 12:30 pm Discussion
12:30 pmLunch
1:30 pm - 4:00 pmFree Time
4:00 pm - 6:00 pmPoster Session
6:00 pmDinner
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm THE ASTHENOSPHERE II - HOW DO THE LITHOSPHERE, ASTHENOSPHERE AND DEEPER MANTLE INTERACT?
Discussion Leader: Magali Billen (University of California, Davis)
7:30 pm - 8:20 pmAnne Davaille (IPG Paris)
"Cold small-scale convection and deep hot mantle upwellings"
8:20 pm - 8:30 pm Discussion
8:30 pm - 9:20 pmHans Keppler (Bayerisches Geoinstitut)
"Water in the mantle and the origin of Earth’s asthenosphere"
9:20 pm - 9:30 pm Discussion
TUESDAY
7:30 am - 8:30 amBreakfast
9:00 am - 12:30 pm OCEANIC LITHOSPHERE FROM RIDGE TO TRENCH
Discussion Leader: Don Forsyth (Brown University)
9:00 am - 9:50 amRobert Dunn (University of Hawaii)
"Seismic structure beneath ridges: insights for mantle geodynamics, thermal structure and melt distribution"
9:50 am - 10:00 am Discussion
10:00 amCoffee Break
10:30 am - 11:20 amRob Evans (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
"Electrical conductivity of the oceanic mantle: constraints on composition, temperature and melting processes"
11:20 am - 11:30 am Discussion
11:30 am - 12:20 pmKeith Priestley (University of Cambridge)
"Seismic velocity and thermal structure of the oceanic upper mantle"
12:20 pm - 12:30 pm Discussion
12:30 pmLunch
1:30 pm - 4:00 pmFree Time
4:00 pm - 6:00 pmPoster Session
6:00 pmDinner
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm ANISOTROPY - FABRIC DEVELOPMENT, MAINTENANCE, AND DESTRUCTION
Discussion Leader: Thorsten Becker (University of Southern California)
7:30 pm - 8:20 pmJames Gaherty (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory)
"Seismic characterization of fabric and deformation in the crust and upper mantle"
8:20 pm - 8:30 pm Discussion
8:30 pm - 9:20 pmAndrea Tommasi (Geosciences Montpellier)
"How does anisotropy form and evolve in the mantle"
9:20 pm - 9:30 pm Discussion
WEDNESDAY
7:30 am - 8:30 amBreakfast
9:00 am - 12:30 pm SUBDUCTION ZONES - WHAT GOES DOWN AND WHAT COMES UP?
Discussion Leader: Geoffrey Abers (Boston University)
9:00 am - 9:50 amKaren Fischer (Brown University)
"Mantle structure in subduction zones: clues for geodynamics and melting processes"
9:50 am - 10:00 am Discussion
10:00 amCoffee Break
10:30 am - 11:20 amKatherine Kelley (University of Rhode Island)
"Distribution of water across the subduction zone mantle wedge"
11:20 am - 11:30 am Discussion
11:30 am - 12:20 pmJason Phipps Morgan (Cornell University)
"Earth’s deep water cycle"
12:20 pm - 12:30 pm Discussion
12:30 pmLunch
1:30 pm - 4:00 pmFree Time
4:00 pm - 6:00 pmPoster Session
6:00 pmDinner
7:00 pm - 7:30 pmBusiness Meeting
(Nominations for the next Vice Chair; Fill out Conference Evaluation Forms; Discuss future Site & Scheduling preferences; Election of the next Vice Chair)
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm WHY IS THE TRANSITION ZONE IMPORTANT?
Discussion Leader: Paul Tackley (ETH Zurich)
7:30 pm - 8:20 pmDavid Bercovici (Yale University)
"The (possible) influence(s) of the transition zone on mantle convection and the Earth’s geochemical evolution"
8:20 pm - 8:30 pm Discussion
8:30 pm - 9:20 pm Donald Weidner (SUNY Stony Brook)
"Stress - Strain - Time relations at high P and T"
9:20 pm - 9:30 pm Discussion
THURSDAY
7:30 am - 8:30 amBreakfast
9:00 am - 12:30 pm DEGLACIATION AND SEA-LEVEL CHANGE - EARTH’S RESPONSE TO LOADING ON MULTIPLE TIME SCALES
Discussion Leader: James Davis (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
9:00 am - 9:50 amMichael Bevis (Ohio State University)
"Tectonic setting, elastic and viscoelastic structure, and Earth’s response to past and present loads"
9:50 am - 10:00 am Discussion
10:00 amCoffee Break
10:30 am - 11:20 amMark Tamisiea (Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory)
"Gaining insight on glacial isostatic adjustment and sea level change from new geodetic measurements"
11:20 am - 11:30 am Discussion
11:30 am - 12:20 pmRobert Moucha (GEOTOP Universite du Quebec a Montreal)
"Modeling surface motions and relative seal level change induced by mantle convection"
12:20 pm - 12:30 pm Discussion
12:30 pmLunch
1:30 pm - 4:00 pmFree Time
4:00 pm - 6:00 pmPoster Session
6:00 pmDinner
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm UNRESOLVED QUESTIONS
Discussion Leader: Barbara Romanowicz (Univesity of California, Berkeley)
7:30 pm - 8:20 pmMarc Hirschmann (University of Minnesota)
"Distribution and transport of volatiles in the upper mantle"
8:20 pm - 8:30 pm Discussion
8:30 pm - 9:20 pmPeter van Keken (University of Michigan)
"Role of subduction and plumes in the dynamical evolution of the Earth’s upper mantle"
9:20 pm - 9:30 pm Discussion
FRIDAY
7:30 am - 8:30 amBreakfast
9:00 amDeparture

Conference Links

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