U.S.-France Cooperative Research: Magnetoconvection Experiments in Gallium

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This three-year award for U.S.-France cooperative research in geophysics involves Peter L. Olson of Johns Hopkins University and Jean-Claude Nataf of the Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris, France. They propose to conduct a series of fluid dynamics experiments using liquid galium. The objective is to understand the dynamics of the Earth's core, including the operation of the geodynamo, and to eventually build an experimental model of the geodynamo. They will investigate thermochemical convection in liquid gallium subjected to the combined influences of rotation and magnetic fields and study the crystallization of gallium alloys in the presence of convection, rotation and magnetic fields. The project takes advantage of similar experiments conducted by the French group and provides access to excellent facilities in France.