PLATO – PLAte Tectonics and Ore deposits

Project PLATO is an ARC Linkage project as a collaboration between the EarthByte Group and Lithodat. CIs, PIs and AIs include Dietmar Müller (Usyd) Maria Seton (Usyd) Sabin Zahirovic (Usyd) Sara Polanco (Usyd) Brent McInnes (Curtin Univ.) Fabian Kohlmann (Lithodat) In addition, Dr Ehsan Farahbakhsh is a research fellow and Elnaz Heidari is a PhD student … Read more…

Gondwana Research: Mapping paleoelevations along active continental margins with igneous geochemistry: A case study from South America

Mountains and mountain ranges, often situated at convergent plate margins, play a pivotal role in many fields of the Earth, climate, and biological sciences. Reconstructing past episodes of mountain building from the geological rock record is one of the main challenges for unravelling the ancient physical geography of Earth’s surface. Established methods for quantifying past … Read more…

Scientific Reports: Kimberlite eruptions driven by slab flux and subduction angle

Kimberlites are sourced from thermochemical upwellings which can transport diamonds to the surface of the crust. The majority of kimberlites preserved at the Earth’s surface erupted between 250 and 50 million years ago, and have been attributed to changes in plate velocity or mantle plumes. However, these mechanisms fail to explain the presence of strong … Read more…

Nature Reviews Earth and Environment: Deconstructing plate tectonic reconstructions

The evolving mosaic of tectonic plates across the surface of the Earth sets boundary conditions for the evolution of biotic and abiotic processes and helps shape the dynamics of its interior. Reconstructing plate tectonics back through time allows scientists from a range of disciplines (such as palaeobiology, palaeoclimate, geodynamics and seismology) to investigate Earth evolution … Read more…

Postgraduate Research Scholarship in Deep-time exploration for mineral deposits along convergent margins

Postgraduate research scholarship at the EarthByte Group for international and domestic students. Up to $107,850 stipend scholarship to support a PhD student to research in deep-time exploration for mineral deposits along convergent margins   Highlights Value Eligibility Open date Closing date $35,950 pa (for up to 3 years, with a possible 6 month extension) Full-time … Read more…

EarthByte welcomes Matthew Merkas and Yiyan Wang

Welcome Matthew Merkas and Yiyan Wang to the EarthByte Group! They will work with Maria Seton and Michael Chin on “GPlates In Schools” mobile app. The “GPlates-in-schools” program is funded by AuScope, comprising a GPlates app with integrated lesson plans, to provide an Earth Science-focused education engagement initiative. Matthew is an app developer in the EarthByte … Read more…

Earth Science Reviews: Sea-level fluctuations driven by changes in global ocean basin volume following supercontinent break-up

Long-term variations in eustatic sea level in an ice-free world, which existed through most of the Mesozoic and early Cenozoic eras, are partly driven by changes in the volume of ocean basins. Previous studies have determined ocean basin volume changes from plate tectonic reconstructions since the Mesozoic; however, these studies have not considered a number … Read more…

GPlates mobile app developer wanted

The EarthByte Group is looking for a student with experience in app development to work as part of an AuScope funded GPlates-in-Schools project. The position will be covered by a casual contract of 20-30 hours per week, depending on the time commitment of the candidate. The successful applicant can complete these hours through a regular … Read more…

Terra Nova: The Louisiade ophiolite: A missing link in the western Pacific

Recent dredging of a 100 km long ridge along the northernmost part of the Louisiade Plateau (LP) recovered serpentinized peridotites, MORB (mid-ocean-ridge basalt) and volcaniclastic breccia–conglomerates. Clinopyroxene, Cr-spinel and bulk rocks show that the serpentinites are harzburgites to dunites, whereas hornblende phenocrysts from volcaniclastic rocks reflect hydrous, andesitic volcanism. The association of MORB, depleted mantle rocks … Read more…