The Subduction Reference Framework: unravelling the causes of long-term
sea-level change
2009-2012
Sea level has fluctuated by up to 300 m through geological time, creating
vast sedimentary basins and associated natural resources. We will use
Earth's subduction history as imaged by seismic tomography to establish a
subduction reference framework for the past 200 million years, tracking all
tectonic plates in both latitude and longitude. 4D numerical mantle-plate
tectonic simulations (3D plus time) will reconstruct how the recycling of
old, cold oceanic plates into the mantle have influenced surface topography
and sea-level change since the breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea.
Participants:
Dietmar Muller
Maria Seton
Michael Gurnis
Trond Torsvik