Laboratory Experiments in Geodynamics

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This is a project to conduct laboratory fluid dynamical experiments on thermal and compositional convection processes occurring within the Earth's mantle and core. The experiments are designed to model two of the most important fluid mechanical phenomena in the deep interior. These are: (1) segregation and remixing of former oceanic lithosphere material by subsolidus mantle convection, and (2) thermo-chemical convection in the liquid outer core. Each of these are central to our understanding of large scale dynamics in the Earth's interior. The redistribution of subducted oceanic lithosphere controls the geochemical evolution of the mantle, and thermo-chemical convection in the outer core is responsible for generation of the geomagnetic field. At the present time, both processes are not well constrained by observations. The experiments will serve to bridge the gap between existing isotopic, seismological and geomagnetic observations and theories for these processes.