ARC Centre of Excellence for Core to Crust Fluid Systems

Earth has evolved through cycles of crustal formation and destruction, punctuated by "tipping points", when rapid cascades of interlinked events produced dramatic changes in the composition of the oceans, the oxygen levels of the atmosphere, the tectonic behaviour of the crust and mantle, and the distribution of mineral and energy resources. These events changed the distribution and behaviour of fluids in the deep Earth, and each altered Earth's evolution irreversibly.
Key issues are: when did subduction start; how did it contribute to the cooling of Earth; how has this process evolved through time? Isotopic studies will define the rates of continental growth vs recycling through time, and test linkages between crust and mantle events. Geophysical imaging and dynamic modelling will be used to build 3D models of subduction dynamics, thermal evolution and geodynamic cycles. Stable-isotope studies will track water and other fluids in their cycles through the earth and the hydrosphere.