Advancing Earth & Planetary Sciences using Seismology
We develop & disseminate resources from planetary-scale seismological research in collaboration with scientists worldwide.
Seismology is our primary tool for understanding various phenomenon that shape the Earth's deep interior. It also helps characterize natural hazards such as earthquakes and landslides that emanate vibrations in the solid Earth. The method of seismic tomography uses waves generated by earthquakes to image the Earth’s interior in a manner similar to CT scanning of the human body. Routine calculations for earthquake magnitudes and early warning systems also need Earth models. This portal contains data, documentation, software and models that are used for various applications in the geosciences and beyond.
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Research Highlights
- What are the Earth's average physical properties (e.g. density, shear/bulk attenuation, velocity, anisotropy)?
- Can astronomic-geodetic and full-spectrum seismological data (~1-3200 seconds) be reconciled?
- How can strong lateral variations (e.g. crust) be accounted for (i.e. theory, observations) in radial models?
- What can we robustly interpret about the Earth's interior based on its radial features?
- Is the outer core well mixed and undergoing adiabatic compression?
- Can spin transitions in iron-bearing minerals be detected in the lower mantle?
- What is the bulk composition of different regions? Is it pyrolitic everywhere?
- Is there a pervasive thermo-chemical boundary layer atop the core-mantle boundary?
- What is the radial extent and origin of large-scale anisotropy in the mantle?
- Where does the most energy dissipation occur and what is its dominant mechanism?
Check out our manuscripts that describe the new radial (one-dimensional) reference Earth model (REM1D), which serves as the update to the preliminary reference Earth model (PREM; Dziewonski and Anderson, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 1981). Visit this link to access the resources from this study.