Evolution of thermochemical plumes
Origin of the asthenosphere
Small-scale sublithospheric convection [(summary)] [(abstract)]
Shear-driven upwelling [(summary)]
Plume-lithosphere interaction [(press release)]
Multi-component melting dynamics [(abstract)]
Intraplate volcanism
Large-scale thermochemical convection

" I'm a geodynamicist that is primarily interested in the origin of volcanism, and the structure of the Earth's mantle. Specifically, my research is focused on mantle plumes and hotspot volcanism, small-scale convection in the upper mantle (as initiated by asthenospheric shear, and thermal or compositional instability), as well as the role of mantle heterogeneity on mantle flow, melting dynamics, and magma geochemistry. Volcanism well away from tectonic plate boundaries offers a good opportunity to study the chemical make-up of the mantle, as well as the dynamic processes that lead to magma generation. I apply numerical modeling techniques to integrate basic fluid dynamical principles with constraints from mineral physics and earthquake seismic tomography in realistic 3-dimensional computer simulations. These models each run for days or weeks on hundreds of computer cores parallel. For interpretation, numerical model predictions are quantitatively compared to a wide variety of geophysical and geochemical surface observables. "


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