Interaction between Plate Tectonics and Mantle Flow: From Regional to Global Scales

研究者建议建立板块构造与地幔对流和大陆变形相互作用的动力学模型。他们将继续进行建模研究，将地幔动力学置于明确的板块构造框架中，这样模型就可以在时域（例如地表隆起的地质约束）和当今的地球物理观测（例如地震层析成像）中进行测试。他们将明确地关注三个问题，这些问题在板块构造框架内被很好地提出：早白垩世以来的大规模流动与冈瓦纳大陆的分裂有关；2)。汤加-克马德克俯冲带始新世以来的时间演化3)。中中新世以来北美西部岩石圈和上地幔的变形。在所有情况下，他们将使用一种通用的方法，其中对流方程在球面范围内求解，使用能够处理粘度变化非常大的问题的有限元代码。他们将使用内部312处理器贝奥武夫计算机上的并行化软件来解决大型的、解决得很好的问题。

Gurnis 0107137 The investigators propose to develop dynamic models of the interaction of plate tectonics with mantle convection and continental deformation. They will continue with modeling studies in which mantle dynamics is placed within an explicit plate tectonics framework, such that models are tested with observations in both the time domain (for example geological constraints on surface uplift) and present day geophysical observations (such as seismic tomography). They will explicitly focus on three problems which are well posed within a plate tectonics framework: 1.) The large-scale flow since the Early Cretaceous associated with the breakup of Gondwanaland; 2.) The time-dependent evolution of the Tonga-Kermadec subduction zone since its inception during the Eocene; 3.) The deformation of western North American lithosphere and upper mantle since the Middle Miocene. In all cases, they will use a common methodology in which the convection equations are solved within a spherical domain using a finite element code capable handling problems with very large variations in viscosity. They will solve large, well-resolved problems using the parallelized software on an in-house 312 processor Beowulf computer.