"Continental Smokers": evaluating mantle degassing, CO2 flux, geomicrobiology, and water quality in extensional continental regimes

这项研究通过评估大陆伸展区域的脱气，挑战了一个普遍存在的观念，即大多数全球二氧化碳脱气发生在大洋中脊和空中火山。要检验的假设是，从地球深处有大量未被认识的流体和气体向上流动，通过格兰德裂谷和美国西部其他构造活跃地区的喷口上升。这些流体通常以碳酸盐沉积(钙华)泉的形式发出，降低了该地区的水质，向大气释放碳，并支持不同的微生物生态系统。这项研究将收集主要泉水系统和相关地下水的地球化学性质(包括微量元素、稳定同位素和惰性气体分析)随时间变化的数据，以评估微震活动正在触发平流输送和脱气的假说。微生物采样和DNA扩增将被用来比较这些大陆吸烟者？给海洋传播中心附近的黑人和白人吸烟者。这项研究将支持研究生和本科生的培训，以及博物馆关于钙华泉水及其地质和水文意义的展览。

This study challenges a widespread notion that most global CO2 degassing takes place at mid-ocean ridges and subaerial volcanoes by evaluating degassing in continental extensional areas. The hypothesis to be tested is that there is a substantial and unrecognized upward flux of fluids and gases from deep within the earth that rise through vents in the Rio Grande rift and other tectonically-active regions of the western U.S. These fluids often issue as carbonate-depositing (travertine) springs, degrade regional water quality, release carbon to the atmosphere, and support distinct microbial ecosystems. This study will gather data on time-variations in the geochemical character (including trace element, stable isotope and noble gas analysis) of major spring systems and associated groundwaters to evaluate a hypothesis that microseismicity is triggering advective transport and degassing. Microbial sampling and DNA amplification will be used to compare these ?continental smokers? to black and white smokers known along oceanic spreading centers. The study will support graduate and undergraduate training, as well as a museum exhibit on travertine springs and their geological and hydrologic significance.