The Arctic realm hosts vast extended continental shelves bordering old land masses, one of the largest submarine Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) -the Alpha-Mendeleev Ridge - of Mesozoic age, and the slowest mid-ocean spreading ridge (the Gakkel Ridge) on the globe. Extreme variations in the evolution of landscapes and geology reflect the tug-of-war between the formation of new oceans, like the North Atlantic, and the destruction of older oceans: the South Anyui, Angayucham and North Pacific, which were accompanied by rifting, collision, uplift and subsidence. The causal relationships between the deep-mantle and surface processes in the Circum-Arcic region remain unclear. Geoscientific information on the relationship between the onshore geology and offshore ridges and basins in combination with variations in the mantle is the key for any deeper understanding of the entire Arctic Ocean.
This session provides a forum for discussions of a variety of problems linked to the Circum-Arctic geodynamics and aims to bring together a diversity of sub-disciplines including plate tectonics, mantle tomography, seismology, geodynamic modelling, igneous and structural geology, geophysical imaging, sedimentology, geochemistry. Particularly encouraged are papers that address lithospheric-mantle interactions in the North Atlantic, the Arctic and North Pacific regions, mantle dynamics and vertical and horizontal motion of crustal blocks and consequences for paleogeography. As geologic and tectonic models are inherently tied with changes in the oceanographic and climatic development of the Arctic, we also invite studies that focus on the interplay between these processes and across timescales. Lastly, we would like to invite contributions from studies concerning the implications of how the Arctic’s geography and geology are portrayed by modern data and issues related to jurisdiction and sovereign rights with particular focus on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Public information:
This session provides a forum for discussions of a variety of problems linked to the Circum-Arctic geodynamics and aims to bring together a diversity of sub-disciplines including plate tectonics, mantle tomography, seismology, geodynamic modelling, igneous and structural geology, geophysical imaging, sedimentology, geochemistry. As geologic and tectonic models are inherently tied with changes in the oceanographic and climatic development of the Arctic, we also show results from studies that focus on the interplay between these processes. The implications of how the Arctic’s geography and geology are portrayed by modern data and issues related to jurisdiction and sovereign rights with particular focus on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea are also discussed.

The Azores archipelago is located in the triple junction of the North American, Eurasian and Nubian tectonic plates. The origin of the magmatism in the archipelago remains controversial even though it has generally been associated with a mantle plume interacting with the local structural regime. Due to this peculiar geodynamic setting, earthquakes, subaerial and submarine volcanic eruptions may occur in the archipelago. The identification of possible signs of unrest of the volcanoes is challenging and much of the recent volcanic activity is characterized by the occurrence of seismic swarms, ground deformation episodes and the presence of secondary manifestations of volcanism. The archipelago is located in the vicinity of the central Northern Atlantic Ocean, what makes the islands vulnerable to storms, floods and landslides. The islands are thus ideally suited to apply different multidisciplinary methodologies for the study of geological hazards.
This session aims to focus on the Azores submarine plateau and islands as a natural laboratory for the study of different geological processes. Here, we aim at contributions from the different fields of Geology, Geophysics and Geochemistry dealing with the geodynamic context of the Azores, studying the evolution and geological diversity of the Azores and evaluate hazards that can affect the islands.

The Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt is one of the largest and most prominent suture zones on Earth. The belt ranges from the Mediterranean in the west to Indonesia in the east. It results from the subduction and closing of different branches of the Tethyan Oceanic Realm and the subsequent collision of the African, Arabian and Indian continental plates with Eurasia. Its long-lasting geological record of complex interactions among major and smaller plates, featuring the presence of subduction zones at different evolutionary stages, has progressively grown as a comprehensive test site to investigate fundamental plate tectonics and geodynamic processes with multi-disciplinary studies. Advances in a variety of geophysical and geological fields provide a rich and growing set of constraints on the crust-lithosphere and mantle structure, as well as tectonics and geodynamic evolution of the entire mountain belt

We welcome contributions presenting new insights and observations derived from different perspectives like geology (stratigraphy, petrology, geochronology, geochemistry, tectonics and geomorphology), geophysics (seismicity, seismic imaging, seismic anisotropy, gravity), geodesy (GPS, InSAR), modelling (numerical and analogue), risk assessment (earthquake, volcanism), as well as from multi-disciplinary studies.

Keynote Presentations:
-Insights into the transitions in the Banda Arc-Australian continental collision from seismic imaging of deep slab structures by Meghan Miller (Australian National University)
-Active tectonics of Iran and the South Caspian: from earthquakes to
mountain-building by Richard Walker(Oxford University)

The Alps have been intensively studied by geologists for more than a century, providing a unique natural laboratory to deepen our understanding of orogenic processes and their relationship to mantle dynamics. Although most concepts that underlie current studies of mountain belts and convergence dynamics were born in the Alps, the belt is now being examined with renewed vigour in the AlpArray project. This project involves a large number of European institutions, with efforts focused on the AlpArray Seismic Network to provide homogeneous seismological coverage of the greater Alpine area at unprecedented aperture and station density, both on land and sea. New data is being recorded in a multidisciplinary research effort, and other projects are being planned in the immediate and mid-term future.
Within this context, we invite contributions from the Earth Science community that highlight new results in AlpArray and that identify and solve key open questions of the present and past structure and dynamics of the Alps and neighbouring orogens. Both disciplinary and multi-disciplinary contributions are welcome from geophysical imaging, seismotectonics, geodesy, geodynamics, gravimetry, tectonics, structural geology, petrology, geochronology, thermomechanical modelling and other allied fields. Scales of interest range from crustal to upper mantle, in the Alps and neighbouring mountain belts such as the Apennines, the Carpathians and the Dinarides.

A Wilson cycle (first coined by Dewey and Burke in 1977) describes the sequence of continental rifting, the opening of an ocean basin, the subsequent destruction of an oceanic basin by subduction, and finally ocean closure and continent-continent collision. The Caledonian orogenic cycle is the “original” Wilson cycle as described by J. Tuzo Wilson in 1966. It commenced in the late Proterozoic with the protracted disassembly of the Rodinia supercontinent and the formation of the Iapetus ocean. The closure of the Iapetus began in the early Palaeozoic and the final continent-continent collision between Laurentia and Baltica took place in the Silurian-Devonian, shortly followed by orogenic extension in the Devonian-Carboniferous.

The Caledonian mountain belt represents a world-class example of a deeply denudated Himalayan-style orogen. The exposed crustal sections allow the study of all stages of the Wilson cycle and may contribute to our understanding of many of the fundamental questions in plate tectonics, including (1) the role of inheritances during rifting and collision, (2) continental-rifting, break-up and ocean formation, (3) subduction, (4) marginal basin formation, (5) arc-continent and continental collisions, (6) (U)HP metamorphism, (7) orogenic wedge formation and dynamics, (8) the formation of crustal-scale shear zones, (9) ductile and brittle deformation mechanisms, and (10) the dynamics of late- to post-orogenic extension and deep crustal exhumation.

This session aims to bring together scientists studying rocks and geological processes from all stages of the Caledonian Wilson cycle, i.e. from rifting to collision and post-orogenic extension, and welcomes sedimentological, petrological, geochemical, geochronological, geophysical, structural, and modelling contributions that help to improve our understanding of the Caledonides and mountain belts in general.

Volcanic Islands are environments created by the growth of volcanoes in the sea, modified by geologic, environmental, biological and human activity. They are highly varied in geology, terrain, environment and social makeup. They are fragile environments in that they respond rapidly to global or local changes in a way that links geology, social activity and environment. Dealing with a complex object such as volcanic island requires a multidisciplinary approach on their on-land and submarine processes that crosses scientific, social and economic boundaries. From a geological and geophysical perspective there are numerous aspects that need to be addressed to acquire a comprehensive picture of how volcanic islands are born, grow up, evolve and die. These include their geodynamic setting, magmatism, volcanism, hydrothermalism, tectonics, and erosion and material transport, as well as their associated hazards and risks, environmental change record, or energy and economic resources. With the aim at integrating all this multidisciplinary research into a single forum of discussion, we offer this scientific session on Volcanic Islands, in which any geological and geophysical research on such complex environments will be more than welcome.

The aims of the session are (1) to discuss methodological and instrumental advances in geophysical imaging of volcanoes and (2) to explore new knowledge provided by these studies on the internal structure and physical processes of volcanic systems. We invite contributors from all geophysical areas, such as seismology, electromagnetics/geoelectrics, gravimetry/magnetics, muon tomography, remote sensing, and other geophysical observations applied to volcanic systems ranging from near-surface hydrothermal activity to magmatic processes at depth.

This year's session is focused on the contribution of geophysical imaging to better understand volcanological processes. We particularly welcome studies where complementary imaging techniques, as well as multi-disciplinary datasets, are integrated to investigate subsurface hydrothermal and magmatic processes.