Earth’s Heat, Dynamics, and Hazards

Course goals

This course aims to provide a fundamental physical understanding of plate tectonics. It focusses on heat, forces, motions and hazard in the crust and lithosphere.

By the end of this course, the student will be able to: 

• Quantify, model and explain heat and energy conservation in continental and oceanic lithosphere
• Understand and quantify the role of the lithosphere in Earth's dynamics (on both a global and regional scale)
• Explain deformation, processes, and observations relating to earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, and explain challenges in their forecasting
• Understand and use quantitative models (in general, and particularly for geodynamic processes)
• Understand the connection between data and methodologies from geophysics, geology, and geodesy

This course forms the foundation for further studies of geological, thermal, and geophysical processes in later years of study. 

There are several options for an in-depth individual project for honors students.

Content

• Introduction (a brief overview of classical and modern aspects of plate tectonics, and the use of quantitative models): How do plates move and deform?
• Temperature in the lithosphere and mantle (models for the distribution and thermal evolution of oceanic lithosphere; effect of temperature distribution on topography and vertical movements; heat flow; temperature distribution in continental crust/lithosphere)
• Forces on the lithosphere and mantle: What causes the plates to move and deform?
• Subduction (gravitational instability, roll-back, and back-arc extension; geometry of subduction zones; temperature distribution in subduction zones; seismicity in subduction zones)
• Stress and rheology (viscosity, elasticity, brittle, plasticity, strength, lithosphere profiles)
• Earthquakes and tsunamis (fault mechanisms, seismic moment, magnitude-frequency relationships, natural versus induced, coupling tsunamis)
• Volcanoes (deformation, forecasting)
• Geodynamic modelling (heat, mechanics, plate tectonics)

The processes discussed are placed in the context of the evolution of active and passive continental margins, the Mediterranean region, or internal parts of tectonic plates (intraplate regions).

Numerical modelling assignments will prepare students for a BSc thesis on modelling topics.