Breaking the ice: Insights into the evolution of plate tectonics from numerical modelling of Europa's ice subduction

俯冲作用是板块构造的主要驱动力，它连接着现今的地表和内部过程，并控制着地球的行星演化。然而，太古代地球是如何从潜在的浅俯冲演化到今天的深俯冲的，目前还不清楚。答案可能就藏在木星的卫星木卫二的冰壳里——木卫二是太阳系中唯一一个表现出类似板块构造变形的天体。该项目将使用最先进的数值模型来模拟薄冰壳中的对流，以了解木卫二上的冰吸收动力学。然后将木卫二驱动的模型与早期地球对流和地球上板块边界和俯冲演化的地质约束的数值模型进行比较。该项目将为不同构造体系之间的演化联系提供新的见解，从而更好地理解行星体，这一问题也是理解地球从太古宙到现在的深层和表面演化的基础，并对生命的起源产生影响。

Subduction is the major driver for plate tectonics, linking present day surface and interior processes, and controlling the Earth's planetary evolution. However, it is unclear how the Archean Earth evolved from potentially shallow subduction to deep subduction at present day. The answer may be locked within the icy shell of the Jovian satellite Europa - the only other body in our Solar System to exhibit plate tectonic like deformation. This project will use state of the art numerical models to model convection in a thin icy shell to understand ice subsumption dynamics on Europa. Europa motivated models will then be compared to numerical models of early Earth convection and geological constraints for plate boundary and subduction evolution on Earth. This project will provide new insights into the evolutionary links between different tectonic regimes for a better understanding of planetary bodies, a question that is also fundamental for understanding the deep and surface evolution of our planet from the Archean to present day and has implications for the origins of life.