Have you ever thought about how the oceans overturn, with surface waters sinking to deep in the ocean at high latitudes, drawing warm waters and heat poleward from lowlatitude? Global warming will cause greater freshwater inflow at the sea surface from the melting of ice-caps at high latitude. This might slow, or even shut-down, the ocean overturning. In the geophysical fluid dynamics laboratory we are carrying out experiments with convection and rotation that explore the physics underlying global ocean overturning. A PhB scholar, research Intern, Summer Scholar or a student looking for a Special Research Topic, and who is studying physics or mathematics will assist with the laboratory fluid dynamics experiments, the computer logging of data, and the analysis of the experimental data.

Contact the supervisor directly for more information.

In this project we propose an interdisciplinary approach to develop new and innovative tools for high-resolution investigation of partial melting and high-grade metamorphism. These tools are based on recent findings that trace elements, due to their slower diffusion, are the most retentive record of metamorphic processes. The stability of accessory phases, which are commonly the major hosts of trace elements, will be studied in natural rocks and experiments, particularly to investigate the potential of such phases to buffer trace element contents of partial melts. The project includes experimental petrology, detail chemical characterisation of experiments and natural rocks and analysis of trace element partitioning.

Energy from distant earthquakes, from the southwest Pacific and other regions, samples the upper-mantle and crust beneath East Australia and New Zealand and is being recorded at dense arrays of 3-component seismic stations enabling the seismic structure in the lithosphere to be resolved in new detail. Tomographic and receiver function methods will be used to address the terrane architecture and tectonic history of East Australia.

Research student(s) working on the project would have the opportunity to take part in field deployments in East Australia and possibly New Zealand, use existing data collected by the RSES Seismology group, develop seismological methods and use magnetic, gravity and geological data in their final interpretations.