The Future of Marine Heat Flow: Defining Scientific Goals and Experimental Needs for the 21st Century

September 6-7, 2007 Salt Lake City, Utah

Sponsored by NSF's Division of Ocean Sciences

Overview

Marine heat flow observations provide fundamental constraints on physical, chemical and biological processes and properties near and below the seafloor. Processes and systems that influence and are influenced by heat transport within the seafloor include:

• The thermal evolution of the oceanic crust, lithosphere and Earth
• The chemical evolution of the global ocean and regional seas
• Lithospheric construction, geodynamics, tectonics
• Marine hydrology (physical and chemical)
• Seafloor and subseafloor biosphere
• Hydrates and ore deposits
• Convergent and passive margins

Understanding these processes and their dynamics requires quantification of energy and fluid fluxes, in addition to an understanding of the physical and chemical state of fluids and rocks. The importance to a broad community of the topics listed above is indicated by a renaissance in theoretical, observational, and modeling studies in the last 10-15 years in which thermal processes and properties comprise a fundamental part, and by the prominent positions that these topics hold in planning documents that guide numerous national and international research initiatives.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Earth and Ocean Sciences community is struggling to even maintain access to, much less expand, critical capabilities in acquisition, processing, and interpretation of marine geothermal data; these capabilities are essential for training the next generation of researchers who will acquire and use thermal data to address fundamental questions. In order to meet current and future needs, the community must articulate and document scientific priorities and highlight ways in which the community depends on marine heat flow data and their interpretations.

Workshop Structure and Goals

This two-day workshop will comprise intensive discussion and writing, with the primary objectives of achieving consensus on a series of scientific needs and describing a way forward with regard to critical capabilities. We intend to focus most strongly on delineating scientific priorities and strategies, and to a lesser degree on techniques and technologies.

Workshop participants will meet on the first day both with the whole group and in break-out sessions built around scientific and strategic themes. The second day of the workshop will continue this effort and will include discussion of techniques and technologies needed to achieve the broad scientific objectives defined. We will generate draft report materials by the end of the workshop, then circulate these materials among participants for editing and continued discussion within the following 4-6 weeks.

Participation

We encourage participation of scientists and technologists whose research depends on thermal data, methods, and interpretations. All participants should expect to contribute to discussion and to preparation of meeting documents, including report text, artwork, and references. Junior faculty, researchers, and students are particularly encouraged to apply.

Application and Support

Persons wishing to attend the workshop should fill out the workshop application by submitting their name, organization, contact, and support information, along with a brief statement of interest relevant to the workshop, and a one-page abstract describing a (generic) project for which marine thermal data and/or analyses play an important role.

Partial travel support will be provided for most participants, with the level of support depending on the number of participants and their needs. Junior faculty, researchers and students will receive the highest priority for travel support.

Logistics

The workshop will be held in Salt Lake City, UT, at Fort Douglas just above the University of Utah campus.

Participants will be housed in the Guest House, just a few steps away from the meeting venue. Participants will be expected to arrive during the afternoon or evening of Wed, 9/5, and to leave the meeting venue no earlier than 5 pm on Friday 9/7. Most meals will be arranged on site or a short trolley-ride away in downtown Salt Lake City.

Workshop Report
Appendices

Workshop Organizing Committee

• Robert Harris (Chair), Oregon State University
• Andrew Fisher, U. C. Santa Cruz
• Fernando Martinez, University of Hawaii
• Carolyn Ruppel, USGS, Woods Hole