Earth’s Deep

Volatile CyclesHydrogen

Carbon

(diagram courtesy of J Phipps-Morgan)

Possible Loci of Hydrous Melting in the Mantle

Miller et al., Science 2005

Phanerozoic sea level variations

1. The influence of volatiles on material properties of the mantle and core

2. The short-term influences of mantle degassing on climate (from arc volcanoes to LIPS)

3. Subduction of H, C and other volatiles.4. Key role for volatiles in modulating plate tectonics (Earth

vs. Venus, the importance of the asthenosphere, serpentine rheology of oceanic lithosphere and formation of plate boundaries)

5. The mantle-atmosphere connection of the early Earth (everything from magma ocean degassing to the key role of greenhouse gases on climate during the faint young sun.)

6. The importance of volatiles to many types of mantle-derived magmas - kimberlites, alkali olivine basalts, calc-alkaline lavas, komatiites (?)

Many more reasons to study deep Earth volatiles….

Deep Earth Volatile CyclesStretch the Boundaries of

CIDER• 1. Surface processes are a key component

of these cycles • 2. Many interesting aspects of Deep Earth

Volatile Cycles relate to Deep Time (I.e., the Early Earth)

• 3. Potentially, Deep Earth Volatile Cycles are a portal to bring in a greater component of planetary science to CIDER.