Union-wide
Community-led
Inter- and Transdisciplinary Sessions
Disciplinary sessions

GD – Geodynamics

Programme Group Chair: Jeroen van Hunen

GD1 – Mantle Dynamics and Plate Tectonics

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Maelis Arnould

GD1.1 EDI

The plate tectonics theory satisfactorily explains ~90% of the Earth’s volcanism, attributing it to convergent or divergent plate boundaries. However, the origin of significant amounts of anomalous volcanism within both continental and oceanic plate interiors (i.e. intraplate volcanism) as well as regions of excessive magmatism along ridges (i.e. Iceland), are not directly related to plate boundary processes, such as subduction or ridge extension. A variety of models have been developed to explain the origins of this enigmatic magmatism (e.g. mantle plumes, edge-driven convection etc.). Improvements in instrumentation, numerical modelling, the temporal and spatial resolution of data as well as the development of new techniques, have allowed us to better understand mantle dynamics and the Earth’s interior. Re-evaluation, refinement, and creation of new models for the origin of intraplate/anomalous magmatism have also provided better insights on deep mantle processes and shed light on the complex interactions between the Earth’s mantle and surface. Understanding what triggers magmatism unrelated to plate boundary processes is critical to understand the evolution of Earth’s mantle through time, especially before the initiation of plate tectonics and when supercontinents dominated, as well as for understanding magmatism on other planetary bodies in the solar system and beyond. This session aims to facilitate new understandings of intraplate and anomalous magmatism by bringing together diverse ideas, observations, and approaches from researchers around the globe.
We therefore welcome contributions dealing with the origins and evolution of intraplate or anomalous magmatism using a variety of approaches and techniques to tackle outstanding questions from any field, including: petrology, geochemistry, geochronology, isotope geochemistry, geophysics, geodynamics, seismology, and more. This session brings together scientists from any and all backgrounds who work on intraplate/anomalous magmatism using any approach, enhancing discussion and collaboration between disciplines.

Co-organized by GMPV10
Convener: Martha PapadopoulouECSECS | Co-conveners: Jordan J. J. Phethean, Magdalena Matusiak-Małek, Matthew J. Comeau, Lara Kalnins
GD1.2 EDI

A variety of observational techniques are now mature enough to provide valuable insights into the dynamics of the asthenosphere and deeper mantle and its interaction with surface processes. They are derived from seismology, geomorphology, stratigraphy, geodesy, geochemistry, petrology, tectonics and other fields. These observations offer powerful constraints on mantle convection patterns and the dynamics and evolution of the deep Earth system, especially when pursued in combination with theoretical and numerical models of geodynamic processes. The asthenosphere plays a key role in facilitating the interaction of mantle and lithosphere dynamics, controlling processes like postglacial rebound, dynamic topography, as well as plate-driving and resisting forces. Current challenges include the need to reconcile different spatial resolutions between models and observations, uneven data coverage and the determination of appropriate sampling and simulation scales.

This session will provide a holistic view of the surface expression of mantle convection from geodetic to geological time scales using multi-disciplinary methods, including (but not limited to) geodetic, geophysical, geochemical, geomorphological, stratigraphic, and other observations, the seismic imaging of the mantle convective processes, as well as numerical modeling. Thus, it will provide rich opportunities for presenters and attendees from a range of disciplines, demographics, and stages of their scientific career to engage in this exciting and multidisciplinary problem in Earth science.

Convener: Ingo L. StotzECSECS | Co-conveners: Berta Vilacís, Hans-Peter Bunge, Sascha Brune, Aisling Dunn
GD1.3 EDI

Vertical motions of the Earth’s lithosphere away from an isostatically compensated state provide a powerful lens into the dynamic behavior of the sublithospheric mantle. These motions can now be monitored geodetically at unprecedented precision. At the same time, geological records provide invaluable spatial-temporal information about the history of vertical lithosphere motion, for instance through provenance, stratigraphic and other proxies. Altogether, the combination of geodetic and geologic observations provide extraordinary opportunities to constrain deep earth processes in geodynamic forward and inverse models of past mantle convection. The challenges of using Earth's surface records to better understand deep Earth processes involve (1) signal separation from other uplift and subsidence mechanisms, such as isostasy and plate tectonics, and (2) different spatial resolutions and scales between models and observables.

In this session, we aim to bring together researchers interested in the surface expression of deep Earth processes from geodetic to geological time scales using multi-disciplinary methods, including (but not limited to) geodetic, geophysical, geochemical, geomorphological, stratigraphic, and other observations, as well as numerical modeling. We welcome studies that tackle challenges and address questions surrounding mantle convection and its surface manifestation in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic times. Studies using a multidisciplinary approach are particularly encouraged.

Co-organized by G3/GM7/GMPV10/TS6
Convener: Yi-Wei ChenECSECS | Co-conveners: Roland Pail, Hans-Peter Bunge, Anke Friedrich, Beth Kahle
EMRP3.2 EDI

The recent methodological and instrumental advances in paleomagnetism and magnetic fabric research further increased their already high potential in solving geological, geophysical, and tectonic problems. Integrated paleomagnetic and magnetic fabric studies, together with structural geology and petrology, are very efficient tools in increasing our knowledge about sedimentological, tectonic or volcanic processes, both on regional and global scales. This session is intended to give an opportunity to present innovative theoretical or methodological works and their direct applications in various geological settings. Especially welcome are contributions combining paleomagnetic and magnetic fabric data, showing novel approaches in data evaluation and modelling to reconstruct and analyze paleogeography on the regional to global scale across all timescales.

Co-organized by GD1
Convener: Martin Chadima | Co-conveners: Bram Vaes, Dorota Staneczek
EMRP3.5 EDI

The evolution of continents, oceans, and plate boundaries provides a crucial surface boundary condition to understand processes of Earth's environmental evolution and its interior dynamics. This session invites contributions that utilise diverse methodologies to reconstruct and analyse palaeogeography, spanning from regional to global scales, with an emphasis on Precambrian time. These approaches may include, but are not limited to, palaeomagnetism, matching geology such as radiating dyke swarms, detrital zircon provenance analysis, and the utilisation of palaeogeographic full-plate models. These methods can incorporate innovative techniques like artificial intelligence and machine learning. Beyond welcoming research that enhances the community’s ability to improve palaeogeographic reconstructions, we also encourage submissions that examine the interaction of certain palaeogeographic concepts with palaeoclimatic and geodynamic consequences.

Co-organized by GD1/GD3
Convener: Uwe Kirscher | Co-conveners: Ross Mitchell, Johanna Salminen, Yebo Liu
G3.3 EDI

Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) refers to the Earth's response to changes in ice sheets, leading to surface deformation, changes in gravity, rotation, and the state of stress. This process is primarily driven by ice-sheet dynamics and Earth's structure, impacting other Earth systems like the cryosphere and hydrosphere. A wealth of standardized observational data, such as GNSS measurements, relative sea levels, and satellite gravimetry, helps refine GIA models. These models enhance our understanding of ice-sheet history, sea-level changes, and Earth's rheology.

We welcome contributions on GIA's effects across various scales, including geodetic measurements, complex GIA modelling, GIA-induced sea-level changes, and the Earth's response to current ice-mass changes. We also invite abstracts on GIA's impact on nuclear waste sites, groundwater, and carbon resources. This session is co-sponsored by the SCAR sub-committee INSTANT-EIS, Earth - Ice - Sea level, in view of instabilities and thresholds in Antarctica (https://www.scar.org/science/instant/home/) and the IAG/IACS sub-commission 3.4 “Cryospheric Deformation”.

Co-organized by CR7/GD1/GM9, co-sponsored by SCAR and IACS
Convener: Matthias O. Willen | Co-conveners: Holger Steffen, Jun'ichi Okuno, Valentina R. Barletta, Caroline van Calcar
ERE4.8 EDI

The role of natural hydrogen (a.k.a. “geological”, or “white” hydrogen) as a potential major contributor to a decarbonized energy system in the future has sparked significant debate in recent years. Geological helium resources, independent of co-production with fossil fuels, have similarly attracted the attention of both scientists and industry professionals, especially when co-located with hydrogen.

To date, a truly interdisciplinary scientific understanding of the subsurface natural hydrogen/helium system is lacking, with knowledge being fragmented across disciplines, and exploration/assessment workflows in their infancy. This session aims to address key subsurface aspects of geological hydrogen/helium systems, soliciting contributions from a broad range of disciplines, covering solid earth geosciences, geochemistry, hydrology, remote sensing and soil system sciences. In particular, the session aims to address:

- Generation potential and migration/possible accumulation processes and fluid pathways
- Geological history of such systems through the Wilson cycle
- Source rock/origin and conversion kinetics, flux estimates and relation to emplacement/host environment through geological time
- Spatial characteristics of geological hydrogen/helium systems - distribution, 3D geometry and their activity through geological time.
- Measurement and instrumentation aspects to detect, characterize, and quantify source, fluxes, shallow subsurface interactions and surface leakage of H2 and He.
- Natural hydrogen/helium occurrences and recent discoveries

Co-organized by EMRP1/GD1/GI6/GMPV6/SSS5/TS8
Convener: Christian Heine | Co-conveners: Annick Loschetter, Meike Bagge, Rodolfo Christiansen

GD2 – Melts, Volatiles and Chemistry of the Mantle

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Boris Kaus

GD2.1 EDI

Shallow upwelling of the upper mantle is a key process in plate tectonics, allowing seafloor spreading, and enabling the formation of the ocean crust by decompression melting. Normally, the upper mantle is inaccessible beneath the crustal layer, so we rely on exposure along major faults, where dredge and submersible samples, and IODP drilling enables study of this important layer in the Earth.
IODP Expedition 399, in 2023, set a new record for drilling to depth of more than 1.2 km into upper mantle lithologies at the Atlantis Massif, 800 metres north of the Lost City vent field. Recovering mostly serpentinised depleted harzburgites, with dunite veins and gabbroic intrusions this hole provides new insights into the magmatic, hydrothermal and tectonic evolution of the upper mantle along slow-spreading ridges.. We expect this session to showcase initial results from Expedition 399, as well as providing an opportunity for comparison with other locations, particularly from near-ridge environments.
We encourage contributions from scientists working on abyssal peridotites including previous IODP holes, and on the chemistry of peridotite-hosted hydrothermal systems. Topics could include (1) the mechanisms for exhumation of mantle rocks, including deformation processes; (2) partial melting and melt transport in the upwelling mantle, and the relationship to crustal melts and gabbroic intrusions; (3) alteration of peridotites and gabbros during exhumation, including mineral alteration mechanisms and kinetics, and the impact of fluid-rock interaction on vent fluid chemistry, rheology and rock mechanics; (4) the diversity and extent of the shallow and deep biosphere associated with fluid-rock interaction in the exposed upper mantle.

Co-organized by BG7/GMPV3
Convener: Andrew McCaig | Co-conveners: Esther Schwarzenbach, Fengping Wang, Rebecca Kühn
GD2.2 EDI

The Earth’s mantle is a highly dynamic system, that exerts a key control on global scale tectonics and shapes the chemical composition of our planet.
Studies on ultramafic xenoliths, diamonds, exposed mantle sections, ophiolites, and primary melts have proven that the mantle is modally, texturally, and compositionally heterogeneous. Minerals and mineral-hosted inclusions in mantle-derived rocks from various geodynamic settings preserve a vast, but still incomplete record of multistage processes (e.g., melt extraction, deformation, melt/fluid-rock reactions, asthenosphere-lithosphere interactions and/or crustal recycling, possibly subduction-related). Unfortunately, the overlap of these processes makes it challenging to identify the single evolutionary stages, and the use of monodisciplinary approaches often limits our perspective in the interpretation.
To link micro-scale observations to large-scale geodynamic processes, petrological/geochemical models based on mineral and melt/fluid inclusions must be compared to data extracted from geophysics, thermodynamics, HP-HT experiments, and surface gaseous emissions.
With the aim to explore and discuss the new findings of the nature and spatial-temporal evolution of the Earth’s mantle, this session welcomes contributions from a broad range of disciplines, including - but not limited to - petrology, geochemistry of minerals, melt and fluid inclusions, thermo-oxy-barometry, experimental petrology, and thermodynamic modelling.

Co-organized by GMPV7
Convener: Federico CasettaECSECS | Co-conveners: Magdalena Matusiak-Małek, Petros Koutsovitis, Andrea Luca Rizzo
GD2.3 | PICO

The origin and evolution of the continental lithosphere is closely linked to changes in mantle dynamics through time, from its formation through melt depletion to multistage reworking and reorganisation related to interaction with melts formed both beneath and within it. Understanding this history is critical to constraining terrestrial dynamics, element cycles and metallogeny. We welcome contributions dealing with: (1) Reconstructions of the structure and composition of the lithospheric mantle, and the influence of plumes and subduction zones on root construction; (2) Interactions of plume- and subduction-derived melts and fluids with the continental lithosphere, and the nature and development of metasomatic agents; (3) Source rocks, formation conditions (P-T-fO2) and evolution of mantle melts originating below or in the mantle lithosphere; (4) Deep source regions, melting processes and phase transformation in mantle plumes and their fluids; (5) Modes of melt migration and ascent, as constrained from numerical modelling and microstructures of natural mantle samples; (6) Role of mantle melts and fluids in the generation of hybrid and acid magmas.These topics can be illuminated using the geochemistry and fabric of mantle xenoliths and orogenic peridotites, mantle-derived melts and experimental simulations.

Co-organized by GMPV7
Convener: Igor Ashchepkov | Co-conveners: Sonja Aulbach, Natalia Lebedeva, NV Chalapathi Rao
GMPV7.1 EDI | PICO

The dynamics of magmatic systems are driven by complex processes that span from deep mantle melt generation to surface eruptions. These processes involve complex melt-rock interactions, including melt generation in the upper mantle and lower crust, magma transport, differentiation, and emplacement in the crust, the genesis of energy and mineral resources, and volcanic extrusion with consequent hazards. Fluid-mechanical and thermo-chemical processes involving different phases (liquid melt, solid crystals, volatile fluids, and pyroclasts) emerge on sub-millimetre scales while influencing systems at the metre to kilometre scale. Understanding these processes requires a multidisciplinary approach, combining observations, experiments, and computational methods including forward and inverse modelling and machine learning.
Despite the crucial role of computational methods in integrating and interpreting data from various sources, there has been limited progress in establishing a dedicated community within volcanic and magmatic studies. This session aims to address this gap by focusing on computational approaches. We seek to bring together researchers working on forward and inverse modelling, machine learning, and other computational methods to foster a thriving community to complement well established observational and experimental communities.
We encourage contributions that explore the theory, application, and validation of computational approaches in the context of experimental and observational data. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Multiphase flow dynamics
- Thermodynamics and phase equilibria
- Magma transport and storage
- Chemical and rheological melt-rock interactions
- Crystallization and degassing processes
- Energy and mineral resource genesis
- Magma-hydrothermal interactions
- Eruption dynamics and hazards
This session aims to provide a platform for in-depth technical discussions that are challenging to facilitate in broader multidisciplinary sessions, ultimately fostering a stronger computational community within volcanic and magmatic studies.

Co-organized by GD2
Convener: Tobias Keller | Co-conveners: Pascal AelligECSECS, Adina E. Pusok, Catherine Booth

GD3 – Dynamics and Evolution of Earth and Terrestrial Planets

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Jeroen van Hunen

GD3.1 | PICO

Dynamical processes shape the Earth and other rocky planets throughout their history; their present state is a result of this long-term evolution. Early on, processes and lifetimes of magma oceans establish the initial conditions for their long-term development; subsequently their long-term evolution is shaped by the dynamics of the mantle-lithosphere system, compositional differentiation or mixing, possible core-mantle reactions, etc.. These processes can be interrogated through observations of the rock record, geochemistry, seismology, gravity, magnetism and planetary remote sensing all linked through geodynamical modelling constrained by physical properties of relevant phases.

This session aims to provide a holistic view of the dynamics, structure, composition and evolution of Earth and rocky planets (including exoplanets) on temporal scales ranging from the present day to billions of years, and on spatial scales ranging from microscopic to global, by bringing together constraints from geodynamics, mineral physics, geochemistry, petrology, planetary science and astronomy.

Co-organized by GMPV7/PS1
Convener: Paul Tackley | Co-conveners: Gregor Golabek, Lena Noack, Paolo Sossi
GD3.2 EDI

The first half of Earth’s history (Hadean to Paleoproterozoic) laid the foundations for the planet we know today. But how and why it differed and how and why it evolved remain enduring questions.
In this session, we encourage the presentation of new approaches that improve our understanding on the formation, structure, and evolution of the early Earth ranging from the mantle and lithosphere to the atmosphere, oceans and biosphere, and interactions between these reservoirs.
This session aims to bring together scientists from a large range of disciplines to provide an interdisciplinary and comprehensive overview of the field. This includes, but is not limited to, fields such as early mantle dynamics, the formation, evolution and destruction of the early crust and lithosphere, early surface environments and the evolution of the early biosphere, mineral deposits, and how possible tectonic regimes impacted across the early Earth system.

Co-organized by BG7/CL1.1/GMVP5/TS6
Convener: Ria FischerECSECS | Co-conveners: Jeroen van Hunen, Peter Cawood, Bing Xia, Desiree Roerdink
PS1.6

To truly understand the surface features and inner workings of a planet, its tectonic, volcanic, and seismic processes need to be thoroughly studied. To do so, many different methods exist including numerical and analogue modelling studies, lab experiments on rock rheology and environmental conditions, detailed geological mapping, and theoretical geophysical studies of a planet’s available data, such as topography and gravity. To further complement these studies, missions are an invaluable addition to gather data on the various planetary bodies of interest.

Indeed, from a mission perspective, we are set to learn a lot about planetary tectonics, volcanism, and seismicity in the coming decades as BepiColombo reaches Mercury to study its geology and tectonics, the VERITAS and EnVision missions will study the current tectonic and volcanic activity of Venus, and Dragonfly promises a wealth of seismological observations of Titan. As the recent InSight mission showed, these missions have the power to transform our understanding of a planetary system. Looking even more towards the future, it is also expected that seismology will return to the (farside of the) Moon with the selection of the Farside Seismic Suite on a commercial lander in the next few years and the Lunar Geophysical Network remains an encouraged mission concept for a future NASA New Frontiers call.

Here, we aim to bring together contributions that use a range of different methods (modelling, mapping, missions, etc.) to study the tectonics, volcanism, and seismicity of planetary bodies such that different communities may learn from each other in their quest to more thoroughly understand the workings of rocky and icy planets, moons, asteroids, and comets.

Co-organized by GD3/GMPV8/SM3/TS7
Convener: Iris van ZelstECSECS | Co-conveners: Barbara De Toffoli, Alexander Stott
PS1.2 EDI

In June 2021, NASA and ESA selected a fleet of three international missions to Venus, which are planned to launch in 2031. Moreover, other missions are in preparation, such as Shukrayaan-1 (ISRO), Venus Life Finder (Rocket Lab), and VOICE (Chinese Academy of Sciences). With the ‘Decade of Venus’ upon us, many fundamental questions remain regarding the planet. Did Venus ever have an ocean? How and when did intense greenhouse conditions develop? How does its internal structure compare to Earth's? How can we better understand Venus’ geologic history as preserved on its surface as well as the present-day state of activity and couplings between the surface and atmosphere? Although Venus is one of the most uninhabitable planets in the Solar System, understanding our nearest planetary neighbor may unveil important lessons on atmospheric and surface processes, interior dynamics, and habitability. Moreover, as an early-Earth analogue, Venus may help us draw important conclusions on the history of our own planet. Beyond the solar system, Venus’ analogues are likely a common type of exoplanets, and we probably have already discovered many of Venus’ sisters orbiting other stars. This session welcomes contributions that address the past, present, and future of Venus science and exploration, and what Venus can teach us about (ancient) Earth as well as exo-Venus analogues. Moreover, Venus mission concepts, new Venus observations, Earth-Venus comparisons, exoplanet observations, new results from previous observations, and the latest lab and modelling approaches are all welcome to our discussion of solving Venus’ mysteries.

Co-organized by GD3
Convener: Cédric Gillmann | Co-conveners: Gregor Golabek, Anna Gülcher, Julia Maia, Yann Musseau
PS7.4 EDI

The relationship between endogenic and exogenic processes have produced a variety of landforms, compositions and structures observed on Mars, Venus, Mercury and the Moon, which are often similar to those on Earth. The calibration and interpretation of the datasets provided by the plethora of space missions, testing of hypotheses and other practical questions require an ever increasing number of tools and methods for verification. Thus, despite the utility of classical methods of investigations and the continual developments of data mining and machine learning, the scientific community still needs to look for ground-truth to fully interpret the data and test their hypotheses.

The study of analogues (i.e. natural geological settings) and simulant (i.e. artificially made) materials provide insights into processes that may have occurred on other planets, allowing an additional viewpoint for interpretations. Thus, they represent the most effective tool to fill the gap between models/lab experiments and reality, making them fundamental in interpreting geological and other planetary processes.

Due to the increasing interest and importance of this topic, the goal of this session is to bring together scientists from different fields to share their insights in understanding the Earth and terrestrial planets with new “eyes”, plan future missions and investigate limits of life. This includes planetary geologists (working with remotely sensed data, potential field data and seismic data), engineers, astrophysicists studying rocky exoplanets and astrobiologists studying life in extreme environments.

This session welcomes contributions involving studies of:
-Terrestrial analogues to Mars, Mercury, Moon, Icy Satellites and other Solar System bodies
-Field analogues and remotes sensing studies
-Field analogues and potential field /seismological studies
-Laboratory experiments on planetary analogue conditions
-Soil and regolith simulants
-Field terrestrial analogues and studies on life in extreme environments
-Development of ISRU technologies, based on the insights provided by analogue and simulant experiments

Co-organized by GD3/TS7
Convener: Paola Cianfarra | Co-conveners: Gene Schmidt, Hector-Andreas Stavrakakis
BG5.3

This session aims to bring together a diverse group of scientists who are interested in how life and planetary processes have co-evolved over geological time. This includes studies of how paleoenvironments have contributed to biological evolution and vice versa, linking fossil records to paleo-Earth processes and the influence of tectonic and magmatic processes on the evolution of life. As an inherently multi-disciplinary subject, we aspire to better understand the complex coupling of biogeochemical cycles and life, the links between mass extinctions and their causal geological events, how fossil records shed light on ecosystem drivers over deep time, and how tectono-geomorphic processes impact biodiversity patterns at global or local scales. We aim to understand our planet and its biosphere through both observation- and modelling-based studies. We also invite contributions on general exoplanet-life co-evolution.

Co-organized by CL1.1/GD3/GM4/PS6, co-sponsored by pan-EUROpean BIoGeodynamics network (EUROBIG)
Convener: Julian RoggerECSECS | Co-conveners: Yaquan Chang, Attila Balázs, Zhen Xu, Fred Bowyer
NP6.3

Planetary convection provides many challenges, regarding the equation of state (EoS), the coefficients of transport of momentum, heat and different species, and the governing equations. The non-linear transport of momentum causes turbulence (in the restricted sense) but the non-linear transport of heat and mass causes also a range of temporal and spatial scales, chaotic mixing, enhanced transport. Compressibility (cf. EoS), planetary rotation, dynamo action are all circumstances affecting planetary convection. In addition, the interaction between planetary envelopes, at the ICB or CMB for instance, have been shown to affect convection on one or both sides of the boundaries, with or without melting and crystallization. Mathematical, numerical and experimental studies are welcome within this broad subject.

Co-organized by EMRP2/GD3
Convener: Thierry AlboussiereECSECS | Co-conveners: yanick Ricard, Stephane Labrosse
EMRP3.5 EDI

The evolution of continents, oceans, and plate boundaries provides a crucial surface boundary condition to understand processes of Earth's environmental evolution and its interior dynamics. This session invites contributions that utilise diverse methodologies to reconstruct and analyse palaeogeography, spanning from regional to global scales, with an emphasis on Precambrian time. These approaches may include, but are not limited to, palaeomagnetism, matching geology such as radiating dyke swarms, detrital zircon provenance analysis, and the utilisation of palaeogeographic full-plate models. These methods can incorporate innovative techniques like artificial intelligence and machine learning. Beyond welcoming research that enhances the community’s ability to improve palaeogeographic reconstructions, we also encourage submissions that examine the interaction of certain palaeogeographic concepts with palaeoclimatic and geodynamic consequences.

Co-organized by GD1/GD3
Convener: Uwe Kirscher | Co-conveners: Ross Mitchell, Johanna Salminen, Yebo Liu

GD4 – Subduction and Orogeny

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Antoniette Greta Grima

GD4.1 EDI

Subduction drives plate tectonics, generating the major proportion of subaerial volcanism, releasing >90% seismic moment magnitude, forming continents, and recycling lithosphere. Numerical and laboratory modelling studies have successfully built our understanding of many aspects of the geodynamics of subduction zones. Detailed geochemical studies, investigating compositional variation within and between volcanic arcs, provide further insights into systematic chemical processes at the slab surface and within the mantle wedge, providing constraints on thermal structures and material transport within subduction zones. However, with different technical and methodological approaches, model set-ups, inputs, and material properties, and in some cases conflicting conclusions between chemical and physical models, a consistent picture of the controlling parameters of subduction-zone processes has so far not emerged.

This session aims to follow the subducting lithosphere on its journey from the surface down into the Earth's mantle and to understand the driving processes for deformation and magmatism in the over-riding plate. We aim to address topics such as: subduction initiation and dynamics; changes in mineral breakdown processes at the slab surface; the formation and migration of fluids and melts at the slab surface; primary melt generation in the wedge; subduction-related magmatism; controls on the position and width of the volcanic arc; subduction-induced seismicity; mantle wedge processes; the fate of subducted crust, sediments, and volatiles; the importance of subducting seamounts, LIPs, and ridges; links between near-surface processes and slab dynamics and with regional tectonic evolution; slab delamination and break-off; the effect of subduction on mantle flow; and imaging subduction zone processes.

With this session, we aim to form an integrated picture of the subduction process and invite contributions from a wide range of disciplines, such as geodynamics, modeling, geochemistry, petrology, volcanology, and seismology, to discuss subduction zone dynamics at all scales from the surface to the lower mantle, or in applications to natural laboratories.

Co-organized by GMPV10/TS2
Convener: Ágnes KirályECSECS | Co-conveners: Michaël Pons, Antoniette Greta Grima, Jeroen van Hunen, César R. Ranero
GD4.2 EDI

It is becoming clear that Wilson Cycle processes including rifting, drifting, inversion, and orogenesis are more complex than standard models suggest. In this second session of two, we explore new understandings of Wilson Cycle processes from margin inversion, through subduction initiation and progression, to orogenesis. In subduction zones and orogens observations and modelling showcase the significance of inherited geological structures, lithospheric rheology, time-dependence, surface processes, magmatism, obliquity, and geometry in processes of inversion, subduction initiation, and orogenesis. However, our understanding of the role and interaction of these factors remains far from complete. Unexpected observations, such as extensive subsidence and sedimentation during rift-basin inversion (e.g., in the Pannonian basin), or thermal imprinting from continental rifting affecting subsequent orogenesis (e.g., in the Pyrenees) challenge conventional models and emphasize the need for further work on the convergent part of the Wilson Cycle.

This session will bring together new observations, models, and ideas to help understand the complex factors influencing margin inversion, subduction initiation, and orogenesis during the Wilson Cycle. Works investigating time-dependence, inheritance, plate kinematics, strain localisation, magmatism, obliquity, interior plate deformation, driving forces, sedimentation, surface processes, lithospheric/crustal structure, and the interaction/feedback between processes controlling the Wilson Cycle are therefore welcomed to this session.

Contributions from any geoscience discipline, including geophysics, seismology, geochemistry, petrology, plate kinematics, tectonics, sedimentology, field and structural geology, numerical and analogue modelling, or thermo/geochronology etc., are sought. We particularly encourage cross-disciplinarity, innovative studies spanning different spatio-temporal scales, and thought-provoking ideas that challenge conventions from any and all researchers. We especially welcome contributions from student researchers.

Co-organized by TS7
Convener: Zoltán Erdős | Co-conveners: Jordan J. J. Phethean, Patricia Cadenas Martínez, Frank Zwaan, Éva Oravecz
TS2.6 EDI

The shift from accretionary to collisional orogenic setting is elusive, as both scenarios can be laterally contemporaneous along a mountain chain, involving far-field, regional and local geological events that overprint in time and space. The conditions that trigger this shift can be influenced by inherited features of the lithosphere architecture of oceans and continents, including the amount of deformation accumulated during continental breakup and rifting and the thickness and geometry of the converging margins. Classic 2D models of accretionary and collisional belts have become insufficient to explain the diversity of geological aspects, namely structural, magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary, which are critical to understand the paleogeography and the different geodynamic settings involved in the evolution of orogens through the Earth’s history. Modern geological mapping, including classic and modern field geological research using advanced laboratory techniques and geophysics, is highly relevant for conceiving 3D and 4D conceptual and numerical models, which may help to understand better the polycyclic evolution of the orogenesis. We encourage contributions that provide an integrated picture by combining results from active margins in accretionary and in collisional orogens, including lower crust-lithosphere-mantle interactions, highlighting the role of plate tectonics in the architecture of the continental crust, namely on the connection of deep to surface phenomena, including the development of marine and continental synorogenic basins to synorogenic compressional, transcurrent and extensional tectonic settings.
Special emphasis will be given to contributions that use different disciplines and innovative methods like (but not restricted to); field geology, structural geology, geochronology, petrochronology, geochemistry (including isotope geochemistry), geophysics, igneous and metamorphic petrology, stratigraphy, sedimentology, plate reconstructions, numerical and analogue modelling.

Co-organized by GD4
Convener: Ícaro Dias da Silva | Co-conveners: Carmen Maria Aguilar Gil, Fabrizio Cocco
TS2.5 EDI

Fold-and-thrust belts represent an outstanding place to investigate deformational and surface processes and the way these processes interact to shape mountain belts. On a short-time scale, the pattern of deformation and erosion illuminates crustal mechanics and its relation to seismicity, the influence of climate-driven erosion, as well as the influence of fluid flow. On longer-time scales, the structure and dynamics of fold-thrust belts provides pathways to a more mechanistic understanding of rock deformation from micro- to orogen-scale.

In order to understand the rates and mechanisms of orogenic growth, determining the age and longevity of structures such as folds and thrusts is key. Chronological constraints are critical for defining the timing, duration and rate of shortening, fold growth and deposition and more generally the sequence of deformation. In addition to more classical constraints from growth strata, deformed terraces, or low-temperature thermochronometry, the topic benefited from recent advances in K–Ar illite and U–Pb calcite geochronology applied to fault zones and mesoscale brittle structures, allowing for deeper insights into the mechanics of the upper crust.

This session aims at bridging the gap between spatial - from shallow depth to full lithospheric scale- and temporal -short-term vs long-term- scales for a better understanding of building of orogenic wedges and to provide a forum for all disciplines concerned with orogenic wedges to meet and discuss their views. We warmly welcome contributions reporting topical works on fold-thrust belts including seismology, rheology and mechanics, structural geology, dating deformation, thermochronology, geomorphology, thermicity, or fluid rock-interactions. Analogue or numerical modeling work as well as regional case studies are welcome. Furthermore, applied studies aiming at linking the structures and dynamics of fold-and-thrust belts with hydrogeology and generation of carbon-free energy resources such as geothermal energy or natural H2 are also encouraged

Co-organized by GD4
Convener: Olivier Lacombe | Co-conveners: Christoph von Hagke, Esther Izquierdo Llavall, Jonas B. Ruh, Giulio Casini
TS3.2 EDI

Given that approximately 90% of the seismic moment released by earthquakes worldwide occurs along and near subduction zones, there is a clear need for a better understanding of seismic processes and the associated seismic hazards in these areas. Seismicity in subduction zones manifests in various forms, from relatively shallow activity on outer-rise and splay faults, as well as the megathrust, to intermediate-depth (70-300 km) and deep events (>300 km). All these distinct seismogenic environments play a role in shaping the seismic moment budget, hazard, and overall dynamics of a subduction zone.
This session aims to integrate observations and models of seismicity in subduction zones, as well as research that aims at characterizing the processes that drive this seismicity. In order to improve our understanding of the interplay between earthquake occurrence and subduction dynamics, combining seismicity constraints with observations from other disciplines (geodesy, petrology, geomorphology and others) can provide a more complete view of complex subduction zones. We thus also invite interdisciplinary studies that combine geophysical and/or geological observations with laboratory experiments and/or numerical models to address questions such as: (1) What mechanisms control intraplate seismicity? (2) How does outer-rise and splay fault seismicity relate to the seismogenic behavior of the megathrust? (3) How do slab dynamics influence and potentially link to shallow and deep seismicity?

Co-organized by GD4
Convener: Silvia BrizziECSECS | Co-conveners: Gian Maria Bocchini, Iris van Zelst, Christian Sippl
TS4.2 EDI

The links between crustal deformation, mantle dynamics, and climate-driven surface processes have long been recognized as main drivers for the evolution of orogens and sedimentary basins. Yet, the feedback mechanisms between erosion, sediment transportation and deposition, crustal tectonics and mantle dynamics, including magmatism, remain elusive. Understanding the complex interplay between tectonic and surface processes requires an interdisciplinary approach. Quantifying the uplift and erosion rates in orogens and subsidence and sedimentation rates in basins, and separating distinct crustal, deep mantle, and climatic forcings are among the most challenging objectives, because they all act on a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Understanding such a dynamic system requires observational data from field studies, geophysical and well data analysis, thermochronological studies as well as analogue and numerical modelling techniques.
We invite contributions investigating orogenesis and sedimentary basin evolution and their connection to (climate-driven) surface processes, and crustal and mantle dynamics. We encourage contributions using multi-disciplinary and innovative methods addressing the coupling between tectonics and surface processes.

Co-organized by GD4/GM7/SSP3
Convener: Sebastian G. WolfECSECS | Co-conveners: Yanyan Wang, Attila Balázs, Zoltán Erdős
NH2.8

Subduction zones generate numerous natural hazards, including volcanism, earthquakes and tsunamis, and shape the landscape through a series of processes lasting from seconds to millions of years. Their dynamics are driven by complex feedbacks between stress, strain, rock transformation and fluid migration along and across the plate interface, from shallow to deep environments. Despite their utmost importance, the intricate time-sensitive thermo–hydro–mechanical–chemical (THMC-t) processes remain largely puzzling. This is essentially due to the complexity of integrating observations across multiple spatial, magnification and temporal scales (from the nanoscale and the grain boundary size to the plate interface, and from seconds to millions of years).

Our session aims, therefore, at gathering recent advancements in observatory techniques, monitoring and high-resolution imaging of i) the plate interface kinematics, ii) the accretionary wedge, iii) the subducting slab, and iv) the mantle wedge in active and fossil subduction interfaces. This includes studies from a wide range of disciplines, such as seismology and geodesy, geodynamics, marine geosciences, field-based petrology and geochemistry and microstructure, rock mechanics and numerical modelling. We particularly encourage initiatives that foster collaboration between communities to achieve a comprehensive understanding of subduction systems through space and time.

Co-organized by GD4/GMPV4
Convener: Marianne Conin | Co-conveners: Paola Vannucchi, Mathilde Radiguet, Thomas P. Ferrand, Marco Scambelluri

GD5 – Rifting and Mid Ocean Ridges

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Maelis Arnould

GD5.1 EDI

It is becoming clear that Wilson Cycle processes including rifting, drifting, inversion, and orogenesis are more complex than standard models suggest. In this first of two sessions, we explore new understandings of Wilson Cycle processes from the onset of extensional reactivation/rifting, through to breakup and mature ocean drifting. In rifted margins and oceans, observations and models showcase the significance of inherited geological structures, lithospheric rheology, time-dependence, surface processes, magmatism, obliquity, and geometry in processes of rifting, drifting, and extensional reactivation. However, our understanding of the role and interaction of these factors remains far from complete. Unexpected discoveries, such as continental material far offshore (e.g., at the Rio Grande Rise), wide-magmatic rifted margins (e.g., the Laxmi Basin), and ROMP (Rifted Oceanic Magmatic Plateau), continue to challenge conventional models and exemplify the need for further work on Wilson Cycle processes.

This session will bring together new observations, models, and ideas to help understand the complex factors influencing extensional reactivation, rifting, and drifting during the Wilson Cycle. Works investigating time-dependence, inheritance, plate kinematics, strain localisation, magmatism, obliquity, interior plate deformation, driving forces, sedimentation, surface processes, lithospheric/crustal structure, and the interaction/feedback between processes controlling the Wilson Cycle are therefore welcomed to this session.

Contributions from any geoscience discipline, including but not limited to geophysics, marine geosciences, seismology, ocean drilling, geochemistry, petrology, plate kinematics, tectonics, sedimentology, field and structural geology, numerical and analogue modelling, or thermo/geochronology etc., are sought. We particularly encourage cross-disciplinarity, innovative studies, spanning different spatio-temporal scales, and thought-provoking ideas that challenge conventions from any and all researchers, especially including students.

Co-organized by GMPV4/TS7
Convener: Jordan J. J. PhetheanECSECS | Co-conveners: Zoltán Erdős, Julie Tugend, Alexander L. Peace, Scott Jess
GD5.2

The intention of the proposed session is to look at recent advancements in knowledge of tectonic processes leading to the development of transform margins, thermal mechanisms operating during this development and deposystem developing during both the transform margin development and post-breakup transform margin existence. Tectonic processes include fault nucleation and linkage, transform nucleation, deformation focusing and growth, fault interactions of transform segments with their neighbor segments. Deposystems characterization includes all involved processes in their sediment provenance, shelf, slope and oceanic basin. Thermal processes include heat conduction at continental and continent-oceanic transform settings and transform margin settings and thermal effects of geothermal fluids.
The session tries to attract multidisciplinary studies combining various types of geophysical imaging, well data interpretation and numeric simulations.

Convener: Michal Nemcok | Co-conveners: Bryan Cronin, Stanislaw Staniaszek
GD5.3 EDI

Mid-oceanic ridges (MORs) provide the unique opportunity to study two of the three plate boundaries: divergent plate boundaries along and across the ridge axis and tectonically dominated movements (e.g., transform faults). Our understanding of the active processes building and modifying the oceanic lithosphere has increased over the past 20 years due to advances in deep-sea research technologies and analytical and numerical modeling techniques. Increasingly, the processes inferred from the present oceanic lithosphere are also transferred into those operating in the Proterozoic and Archean. Yet, the relative role of magmatic, tectonic, and hydrothermal processes and their interaction in the formation and accretion of the oceanic lithosphere at the ridge, especially at slow and ultra-slow spreading ridges and along transform faults, remains poorly constrained. Transform faults and their extension into fracture zones have previously been considered as relatively cold and magmatically inactive; however, evidence for magmatism has recently emerged. The complex network of faults associated provide ideal pathways for hydrothermal percolation into the Earth’s lithosphere and may therefore play a significant role in the chemical and the thermal budget of the planet, as well as in the chemical exchange with the ocean (e.g., nutrients). Yet, little is known about fluid circulation in the lithosphere in these ultraslow settings.
This session objective is to favor scientific exchange across all disciplines and to share recent knowledge acquired along mid-oceanic ridge axes, transform faults, and fracture zones. We particularly welcome studies using modern deep-sea high-resolution techniques. The session also welcome contributions dealing with recent discoveries in hydrothermal systems, and which integrate geophysical, geochemical petrological and geological data with numerical modeling tools.

Co-organized by TS2
Convener: Manon BickertECSECS | Co-conveners: Thibaut Barreyre, Christoph Beier, Alannah Brett, Zhiteng Yu
TS2.2

The Earth’s mantle makes up 84% of the volume of our planet but our direct knowledge of it is still inadequate because mantle rocks are generally inaccessible to direct sampling as they are buried underneath tens of kilometers of the Earth’s crust. Nevertheless, there are geological processes that can bring slices of mantle rocks to the surface, as in magma-poor passive continental margins and in orogenic belts. Most of these processes remain still puzzling as they are ruled by a complex, time-dependent, compositional, thermal, chemical and rheological interplay.
The objective of this session is present the latest developments in field measurements and observations, monitoring and high-resolution geophysical imaging of i) mantle exhumation at passive margins and ii) orogenic belts. A variety of disciplines are involved in these studies, including rock mechanics, numerical modeling, field-based petrology and geochemistry, geodynamics, seismology, geodesy as well as the results of recent IODP expeditions. The goal of this session is to provide new insight into mantle exhumation and to promote new collaborations in order to advance our understanding of this important and still intriguing process.

Co-organized by GD5
Convener: Maria Filomena Loreto | Co-conveners: Manon Bickert, Eirini Poulaki, Norikatsu Azikawa, Marta Pérez-Gussinyé
TS2.3 EDI

Ever since the inception of Wegener’s Continental Drift and ensuing plate tectonics, the Earth’s crust has been described using a bimodal classification: oceanic versus continental. However, after decades of advances in subsurface imaging, it is clear this is an over-simplification. The crust offshore may be hyperextended and/or extensively intruded continental crust, and continental microplates may be common.
Recent advances in geophysical imaging, dredging and drilling-based exploration have evidenced features like dykes, sills, and Seaward-Dipping Reflectors and tectonic structures such as folds, brittle faults, and shear zones, revealing details of large crustal transects offshore.
We welcome contributions from all fields of geoscience that relate to the extent of continental, oceanic, and hybrid crust beneath continental shelves and in the oceans. Contributions may be based on observations, numerical modelling or theory, and may derive from any part of the world. We also welcome contributions focusing on the long-term processes from orogenesis to rifting and transform faulting, and bring new perspectives to disputed areas.

Co-organized by GD5
Convener: Jean-Baptiste KoehlECSECS | Co-conveners: G.R. Foulger, Alexander L. Peace
TS2.1 EDI

Continental rifting is a complex process spanning from the inception of extension to continental rupture or the formation of a failed rift. This session aims at combining new data, concepts and techniques elucidating the structure and dynamics of rifts and rifted margins. We invite submissions highlighting the time-dependent evolution of processes such as: initiation and growth of faults and ductile shear zones, tectonic and sedimentary history, magma migration, storage and volcanism, lithospheric necking and rift strength loss, influence of the pre-rift lithospheric structure, rift kinematics and plate motion, mantle flow and dynamic topography, as well as break-up and the transition to sea-floor spreading. We encourage contributions using multi-disciplinary and innovative methods from field geology, geochronology, geochemistry, petrology, seismology, geodesy, marine geophysics, plate reconstruction, or numerical or analogue modelling. Special emphasis will be given to presentations that provide an integrated picture by combining results from active rifts, passive margins, failed rift arms or by bridging the temporal and spatial scales associated with rifting.

Co-organized by GD5/GMPV4/SSP3
Convener: Frank ZwaanECSECS | Co-conveners: Carolina Pagli, Ameha Muluneh, Sylvie Leroy, Giacomo Corti

GD6 – Crust, Lithosphere and Asthenosphere

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Frederic Deschamps

GD6.1 EDI

Geodynamic and tectonic processes play a crucial role in shaping the structural and thermal configuration of the lithosphere, influencing the distribution of magmatic, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. Consequently, these processes are also responsible for the heterogeneous distribution of critical subsurface resources, such as metals, rare earth elements, geothermal energy, and natural hydrogen, all essential for the energy transition. Geophysical methods provide us with a present-day snapshot of the long-term geological and structural evolution, as well as insights into short-term deformation, ultimately helping in underpinning large-scale exploration programs to avoid adverse effects on the environment; however, these methods are limited in resolution and can be costly.
Researchers studying the subsurface have identified the natural processes responsible for the formation of these resources, but significant gaps remain in our understanding of when and where the necessary conditions for their formation occurred within the Earth. Furthermore, extracting subsurface resources requires detailed knowledge and understanding of the tectonic evolution and the resulting stress field, whether the rock naturally possesses porosity, permeability, and fractures, or if and how engineering techniques could be used to improve the productivity of these systems.
This session aims to close research gaps between geodynamic processes and the formation of georesources. We invite contributions on observational data analysis, numerical modeling, laboratory experiments, and geological engineering, with a particular emphasis on studies that integrate multiple approaches/datasets.

Co-organized by ERE2/TS8
Convener: Judith Bott | Co-conveners: Sascha Brune, Juan Carlos Afonso, Helen Doran, Ajay Kumar
GD6.2 EDI

Crust forms as a consequence of planetary differentiation and recycling processes. On Earth, differentiation processes have led to the formation and modification of felsic, evolved crust over time and provide a window into the complexity of crust from the Archean to the present. Near-surface interaction with the biosphere, internal differentiation by tectonic, igneous and metamorphic processes, and recycling into the mantle constantly change the composition of Earth crust. However, we have a limited understanding of the formation, differentiation, and stabilization of the Earth's lower crust and the transition zone between that and the mantle. Recent studies on exposed deep crust, including ultrahigh-temperature (UHT) terrains and the crust–mantle transition, as well as drilling initiatives (such as ICDP-DIVE) are adding novel insights and a new dimension to our understanding of planetary crust evolution and its control on physical properties, redox conditions, volatile elements and georesources such as critical minerals and natural hydrogen. In addition, deep crustal environments may host a range of microbial life that interacts with the chemistry of the crust and influences biogeochemical cycles. We invite submissions aimed at understanding crust-forming and modification processes, using any geological, geophysical, geochemical, geochronological, microbiological datasets and/or geodynamic modelling with the aim of elucidating the 4D evolution of crust on Earth and beyond.

Co-organized by GMPV4
Convener: Marco VenierECSECS | Co-conveners: Kim Lemke, Alexia Secrétan, Junjian Li, Luca Ziberna
GD6.3 EDI

The presence and migration of fluids in the lithosphere can be caused by natural mechanisms (e.g. meteoric water percolation, melt degassing, dehydration metamorphic reactions) or by industrial activities (e.g. ore deposit exploitation and energy production). Subsurface fluids interact with the rock matrix, triggering or enhancing numerous geological processes in the crust and lithosphere. For example, the presence of fluids can lead to rocks’ stress changes and reactivate pre-existing faults, therefore generating earthquakes. Fluids also play a crucial role in the development of magmatic processes and have a remarkable environmental impact. In the lithospheric mantle, fluids can cause a drastic reduction in rock viscosity and favor mechanisms of delamination, or be a key factor in the generation of intraslab earthquakes during subduction. In this view, accurate analyses of fluid properties and reliable reconstructions of source-reservoir systems become of paramount importance for a realistic assessment of crustal and lithospheric features and evolution. In recent years, innovative methods and technologies for reconstructing the 4D physical and chemical variations of fluid-filled porous media gave an important contribution to the comprehension of fluid-rock interaction systems, with a remarkable impact on the assessment of seismic, volcanic and industrial hazards.
This session deals with the main results obtained in the study of fluid-host rock interactions within the crust and lithosphere. Particular attention will be paid to the development and application of integrated, multi-parametric and multi-disciplinary approaches to imaging and tracing crustal fluids in volcanic, tectonic and industrial exploitation environments. The session will focus on innovative research, field studies, modeling aspects, theoretical, experimental and observational advances in detecting and tracking fluid movement and/or pore fluid-pressure diffusion in different regions around the globe, and analyze their correlation with an increase/decrease in natural and anthropogenic hazards. We welcome contributions on advances in seismic monitoring, modeling of fluid-induced crustal and lithospheric evolution, geochemical analyses, tomographic studies, volcanological analyses of fluid effect on eruption styles and frequency, and physical and/or statistical analyses to identify specific seismicity patterns. The session also encourages contributions from Early Career Scientists.

Co-organized by GMPV3/SM7
Convener: Alessio LavecchiaECSECS | Co-conveners: Grazia De Landro, Kristóf Porkoláb, Serena Panebianco, Alexander Koptev
GD6.4 EDI

The session topic is interpretation and modelling of the geodynamic processes in the lithosphere-asthenosphere system and the interaction between crust and lithospheric mantle, as well as the importance of these processes for the formation of the discontinuities that we today observe in the crust and mantle. We aim at establishing links between seismological observations and process-oriented modelling studies to better understand the relation between present-day fabrics of the lithosphere and contemporary deformation and ongoing dynamics within the asthenospheric mantle. Methodologically, the contributions will include studies based on application of geochemical, petrological, tectonic and geophysical (seismic, thermal, gravity, electro-magnetic) methods with emphasis on integrated interpretations.

We invite, in particular multidisciplinary, contributions which focus on the structure, deformation and evolution of the continental crust and upper mantle and on the nature of mantle discontinuities. The latter include, but are not limited to, the mid-lithosphere discontinuity (MLD), the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB), and the mantle transition zone, as imaged by various seismological techniques and interpreted with interdisciplinary approaches. Papers with focus on the structure of the crust and the nature of the Moho are also welcome.

Convener: Alexey Shulgin | Co-conveners: Hans Thybo, Irina M. Artemieva, Xiaoqing Zhang
GD6.5 EDI

The Solid Earth structure beneath Greenland and Antarctica is gaining an increased interest in recent years as it provides a critical boundary condition for the dynamic evolution of the overlying ice sheet. So far no consensus on some of the key structures and parameters is reached and some studies suggest to ignore or use of an ensemble of Solid Earth models as their uncertainties might otherwise lead to unrealistic predictions. We invite contributions working on sub-glacial geology and tectonics to studies addressing the overall lithospheric structure from. Hereby, novel approaches to describe the sub-ice setting (based on machine learning) and integrated joint inversion methods are invited that bridge data to models to describe key parameters for an improved understanding of Ice-Solid Earth interaction.

Convener: Jörg Ebbing | Co-conveners: Zhirui Ray Wang, Emma MacKie, Carmen Gaina, Tobias Stål
TS1.2

Understanding stress distribution and evolution in the Earth's lithosphere is fundamental to unraveling the dynamics of plate boundaries, the development of shear zones, and time-dependent processes such as creep transients. This session aims to bring together research focused on quantifying stress in the viscous crust and mantle using a variety of techniques, including naturally deformed exhumed rock samples, paleopiezometry, in-situ deformation experiments, wattmeters, and quantitative numerical models.
We are particularly interested in studies that explore how stress evolves at plate boundaries, influences their viscosity, and drives large-scale geodynamic processes. Contributions that investigate the role of time-dependent processes, such as creep transients, in stress evolution are highly encouraged, as are those that delve into the boundary conditions governing shear zone development and stress distribution. Additionally, we seek research that addresses the origins and implications of stress heterogeneity in rocks, from the sub-grain scale to plate boundaries, and its preservation potential in the rock record.
This session will provide a platform for discussing the integration of different methodologies to better understand the complex behavior of Earth's lithosphere. We welcome innovative approaches to stress quantification and encourage submissions that bridge scales and techniques to offer new insights into the stress dynamics of the viscous crust and mantle.

Co-organized by GD6
Convener: Alissa Kotowski | Co-conveners: Caroline Seyler, Rellie Goddard, Diede Hein, John Platt

GD7 – Rheology and Multiscale Mineralogy in Geodynamics

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Laetitia Le Pourhiet

GD7.1

The goal of this session is to reconcile short-time/small-scale and long-time/large-scale observations, including geodynamic processes such as subduction, collision, rifting, or mantle lithosphere interactions. Despite the remarkable advances in experimental rock mechanics, the implications of rock-mechanics data for large temporal and spatial scale tectonic processes are still not straightforward, since the latter are strongly controlled by local lithological stratification of the lithosphere, its thermal structure, fluid content, tectonic heritage, metamorphic reactions, and deformation rates.

Mineral reactions have mechanical effects that may result in the development of pressure variations and thus are critical for interpreting microstructural and mineral composition observations. Such effects may fundamentally influence element transport properties and rheological behavior.
Here, we encourage presentations focused on the interplay between metamorphic processes and deformation on all scales, on the rheological behavior of crustal and mantle rocks, and time scales of metamorphic reactions in order to discuss
(1) how and when up to GPa-level differential stress and pressure variations can be built and maintained at geological timescales and modeling of such systems,
(2) deviations from lithostatic pressure during metamorphism: fact or fiction?
(3) the impact of deviations from lithostatic pressure on geodynamic reconstructions.
(4) the effect of porous fluid and partial melting on the long-term strength.
We, therefore, invite the researchers from different domains (rock mechanics, petrographic observations, geodynamic and thermo-mechanical modeling) to share their views on the way forward for improving our knowledge of the long-term rheology and chemo-thermo-mechanical behavior of the lithosphere and mantle.

Co-organized by GMPV4/TS5
Convener: Yury Podladchikov | Co-conveners: Lucie Tajcmanova, Shun-ichiro Karato, Evangelos Moulas, Leni Scheck-Wenderoth
GD7.2 EDI

Many regions of the Earth, from crust to core, exhibit anisotropic fabrics which can reveal much about geodynamic processes in the subsurface. These fabrics can exist at a variety of scales, from crystallographic orientations to regional structure alignments. In the past few decades, a tremendous body of multidisciplinary research has been dedicated to characterizing anisotropy in the solid Earth and understanding its geodynamical implications. This has included work in fields such as: (1) geophysics, to make in situ observations and construct models of anisotropic properties at a range of depths; (2) mineral physics, to explain the cause of some of these observations; and (3) numerical modelling, to relate the inferred fabrics to regional stress and flow regimes and, thus, geodynamic processes in the Earth. The study of anisotropy in the Solid Earth encompasses topics so diverse that it often appears fragmented according to regions of interest, e.g., the upper or lower crust, oceanic lithosphere, continental lithosphere, cratons, subduction zones, D'', or the inner core. The aim of this session is to bring together scientists working on different aspects of mechanical anisotropy to provide a comprehensive overview of the field. We encourage contributions from all disciplines of the earth sciences (including mineral physics, seismology, magnetotellurics, geodynamic modelling) focused on mechanical anisotropy at all scales and depths within the Earth.

Co-organized by EMRP1/SM4
Convener: Manuele Faccenda | Co-conveners: Tuna Eken, Judith Confal, Brandon VanderBeek
CR2.8

Geological materials such as ice and olivine are often modelled as viscous fluids at the large scale. However, they have complex, evolving microstructures which are not present in normal fluids, and these can have a significant impact on large-scale flow behaviour. These different materials have many commonalities in how the evolving microstructure influences the large scale flow, yet research is often siloed into individual disciplines.

With this session, we aim to bring together researchers from a range of disciplines, studying a variety of anisotropic materials, and working on different aspects of complex viscous flow such as: viscous anisotropy related to CPO or extrinsic microstructures; crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) or fabric evolution; other controls on rheology such as grain size, dynamic recrystallisation and deformation mechanisms; and impact of rheology on complex flow, e.g. in the transition through a shear margin.

We encourage submissions investigating this topic through numerical modelling, laboratory experiments and observational studies. We are aiming to convene an inclusive and collaborative session, and invite contributions from all disciplines. We particularly encourage early career researchers to participate.

Co-organized by GD7/TS1
Convener: Daniel RichardsECSECS | Co-conveners: Lisa Craw, Ágnes Király, Nicholas Rathmann
TS1.1 EDI

The reconstruction of deformation and metamorphic history through space and time provides key information about the geodynamic evolution of the oceanic and continental lithosphere. However, these contexts are sometimes strongly affected by the interaction with melt/fluid, by rocks' rheological behaviour and by their geological framework. Thus, establishing (micro)structural and (petro)chronological links between these processes is the best tool to constrain the Pressure, Temperature, time, Deformation and Composition (P-T-t-D-X) history of geological areas from the grain scale to the lithospheric scale.
The continuous advancement of high-resolution analytical techniques in structural geology and petrochronology enables us to investigate processes ranging from nano- to lithospheric-scale responses. We aim to provide a forum for geologists dealing with and contributing to unravelling geological issues using a multiscale and multidisciplinary approach. This session welcomes contributions that integrate the results of traditional and innovative analyses with cutting-edge analytical techniques (e.g., EBSD, EPMA, LA-ICP-MS, APT, TEM, µ-CT tomography, and Raman Spectroscopy) addressing the comprehension of local and regional settings.

Solicited authors:
Sascha Zertani
Co-organized by GD7/GMPV4
Convener: Stefania CorvòECSECS | Co-conveners: Alessandro Petroccia, Alessia Tagliaferri, Clément Herviou
TS1.3 EDI

Classic models predicting a depth that separates brittle deformation in the upper crust from a region below in which deformation is dominated by ductile processes have long been outdated. In fact, the deformation behavior of Earth’s lithosphere is more complex and brittle and ductile processes may interact throughout the lithosphere. In the rock record, brittle deformation may be expressed as features ranging from micro-fracturing of mineral grains up to seismic ruptures (e.g., pseudotachylytes) or large-scale faults, and ductile deformation is typically expressed as shear zones ranging from millimeter to kilometer scales. Factors known to determine whether strain is accommodated by brittle and/or ductile processes include, but are not limited to: material properties (e.g., grain size, composition), strain rate, strain incompatibilities, pressure-temperature conditions, the availability of fluids, and rock modification by metamorphic reactions.
The multitude of possible factors determining the deformation style in the lithosphere make a comprehensive understanding of the deformation behavior of Earth’s lithosphere challenging. In this session we aim to tackle the complex topic of lithospheric deformation by combining observations from natural rocks with those from experimental and numerical studies.

Co-organized by GD7/GMPV4
Convener: Sascha ZertaniECSECS | Co-conveners: Anna Rogowitz, Giovanni Toffol, Friedrich Hawemann

GD8 – Core Dynamics

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Phil Livermore

GD8.1 EDI | PICO

The structure and dynamics of the core of planets is essential to understand the planet's thermal, compositional and orbital evolution. This session seeks to showcase recent observational, theoretical and experimental developments in understanding the properties and dynamics of Earth's and terrestrial planetary cores.

We welcome contributions from seismology, mineral physics, geochemistry, geodetic observations, numerical modeling, and all related fields following theoretical, numerical, observational or experimental approaches aimed at providing input towards the global goal of deciphering the history and properties of terrestrial planetary cores.

Co-organized by EMRP1/PS1
Convener: Sébastien Merkel | Co-conveners: Eric Edmund, Jessica Irving
GD8.2 EDI

The Earth’s magnetic field is produced by dynamo action in the liquid iron core, which has profound influence on our habitable planet. One of the most striking manifestations of the geodynamo are complete reversals of the dipole. Numerical simulations indicate that the lower mantle has a manifold impact on the dynamo whereby the absolute value and pattern of the heat flux through the core-mantle boundary affects the field strength, field geometry and reversal rate. However, neither the structure and the long-term evolution of the lower mantle and the core, nor the coupling between the two, are well understood. Moreover, field strength and reversal rate likely influence the survival and evolution of magnetoreceptive organisms, especially magnetotatic bacteria. We invite contributions that aim at understanding the long-term evolution of the geomagnetic field and Earth's core dynamics, deep mantle dynamics and its influence on the geodynamo. This interdisciplinary session aims to bring together paleomagnetists, seismologists, dynamo modellers, mantle dynamicists, mineral physicists, and biologists.

Co-organized by BG7/EMRP2
Convener: Stuart Gilder | Co-conveners: Xiaodong Song, Tatiana Savranskaia, Zhu Mao
EMRP3.3 EDI

Examining historic and prehistoric variations in the geomagnetic field provides insights into processes occurring from the core-mantle boundary to the planet's core. Investigating the paleomagnetic field also enhances our ability to predict future changes, which in turn affects the climate and has implications for life on Earth and human technology. Over the past two hundred years, the Earth's magnetic field has exhibited a global decrease of about 10%. Moreover, regions with weakened magnetic fields, or magnetic anomalies, such as the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), have evolved, with a new minimum emerging near the South African coast. Indirect records from archaeological materials, volcanic rocks, sediments, and speleothems are essential for studying the ancient geomagnetic field, covering different time scales, from secular variation to magnetic reversals. In this session, we welcome abstracts that contribute to the advancement of our understanding of geomagnetic field variations in terms of time scale (short and long) and spatial scale (e.g., magnetic anomalies). Applications extend to the fields of geomagnetism, stratigraphy, volcanology, chronology, climate, geobiology, and geospace.

Co-organized by GD8/SSP2
Convener: Kirolosse GirgisECSECS | Co-conveners: Evdokia Tema, Saioa A. Campuzano, Angelo De Santis, Filipe Terra-Nova
GD8.4 EDI | PICO

Since W. Hopkins first suggested in the mid-nineteenth century that a planet’s interior could be studied through the variations of its rotation, and J. Larmor’s early twentieth-century idea that planetary magnetic fields originate from dynamo action in a fluid conductive layer, the dynamics of planetary cores have garnered increasing attention. These dynamics are now recognized as fundamental components of planetary evolution models, contributing to heat and angular momentum balance, energy dissipation, and the generation of magnetic fields, which can be observed both in situ and remotely.

The growing volume of data from satellite and Earth-based missions necessitates ongoing efforts to enhance our understanding of these dynamics through theoretical, numerical, and experimental research. In this session, we welcome contributions from all disciplines to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of planetary core and geodynamo models. This includes research on thermal and compositional convection, mechanically driven flows by precession/nutation, libration, and tides, as well as dynamo processes.

Co-organized by PS1
Convener: Jerome Noir | Co-conveners: Daria Holdenried-Chernoff, Maylis Landeau, Santiago Andres Triana

GD9 – Geodynamics of Specific Regions

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Laetitia Le Pourhiet

GD9.1 EDI

The Alps are an orogen that offers an exceptional natural laboratory to study the evolution of mountain-building processes from short- to long-term and small- to large-scales, including the evolution of plate margins from rifting to subduction, inheritance from previous orogenic cycles, ophiolite emplacement, collision and (ultra)high-pressure rock exhumation, and upper-plate and foreland basin evolution.

Advances in a variety of geophysical, geochronological, geochemical and geological fields provide a rich and growing set of constraints on the crust-lithosphere and mantle structure, tectonics and geodynamics of the entire mountain belt.

We invite contributions from different and multi-disciplinary perspectives ranging from the Earth’s surface to the mantle, and based on geology (tectonics, petrology, stratigraphy, geo- and thermochronology, geochemistry, paleomagnetism and geomorphology), geophysics (seismotectonics, seismic tomography and anisotropy) and geodesy and modelling (numerical and analogue). The aim is for contributions to provide new insights and observations on the record of subduction/exhumation/collision; pre-Alpine orogenic stages; the influence of structural and palaeogeographic configuration; plate/mantle dynamics relationships; coupling between deep and surface processes.

Co-organized by GMPV4/TS2
Convener: Alexis Plunder | Co-conveners: Marco Giovanni Malusa', Stefan Markus Schmalholz, Eline Le Breton, Irene Molinari
GD9.2 EDI

The Caribbean region is an ideal natural laboratory for studying long- to short-term deformation processes along plate boundaries. Indeed, the Caribbean plate has been individualized since at least 140 Ma and its boundaries are still deforming today. Earthquakes in the Caribbean are a stark reminder of the dangers posed by active deformation along the densely populated boundaries of the Caribbean plate, where vulnerability is often extremely high. Over the past decades, these boundaries have been the focus of extensive international research, providing new insights into the geodynamics of the region and the broader geological processes occurring in subduction and strike-slip zones. This includes studies on fluids, seismicity, deformation partitioning, and mantle dynamics, as well as the reorganization of plate boundaries in response to changes in plate kinematics—such as suturing, the migration, extinction, or initiation of volcanic arcs, and deformation or vertical movement.

Co-organized by GMPV4
Convener: Mélody Philippon | Co-conveners: Sylvie Leroy, Yamirka Rojas-Agramonte, Eric Calais, Jose-Luis Granja-Bruña
GD9.3

The geodynamics of Southeast Asia presents a set of processes both at the Earth's surface and deep in the Earth's interior that have shaped the evolution of our planet since the onset of plate tectonics. These processes include rifting at continental margins and marginal basins, long-lived to short-lived ocean subduction, arc and plume-related magmatism, collisional mountain building, and arc docking. Some of these processes are still ongoing or were active in the Cenozoic, which allows us to study those in great detail. Main unknowns on the geodynamics of SE Asia include questions on the reconstruction of the proto-South China Sea plate, paleo-Pacific subduction, and proto-Philippines Sea plate as well as the connection with the Tethyan realm to the south, the collision of Australian-derived fragments in eastern Indonesia and associated extension processes. To address these issues, we welcome contributions from all disciplines of the earth sciences focused on the geodynamics of Southeast Asia: field-based geology, geochronology, and geochemistry on detrital minerals and magmas, seismology, geodynamic thermal-mechanical modeling, plate kinematic and tectonic reconstructions.

Convener: Frédéric Mouthereau | Co-conveners: Thomas Schouten, Tim Brietfel, Jeremy Tsung-Jui Wu, Daniel Pastor-Galán
GD9.4

The western South American subduction zone is among the largest subduction systems on the planet and stands out as the archetype of ocean-continent convergent margins. Compared to other subduction zones, the region is notable because it is associated with the largest accretionary orogen of the world (The Andes cordillera), it shows several regions of flat slab subduction, and it hosted some of the largest instrumentally recorded earthquakes. Over the last years and decades, significant progress has been achieved in characterizing and imaging the constituent parts of the South American subduction zone (downgoing oceanic plates, South American upper plate, plate interface between them, mantle wedge beneath the upper plate) as well in the understanding of geodynamic and seismotectonic processes shaping the convergent margin.

In this session, we aim to bring together scientists and contributions from a wide variety of disciplines that try to constrain and understand past and ongoing processes in this subduction zone. These can include, but are not limited to: seismo-geodetic studies of slow and fast deformation along the plate interface; geophysical studies of subduction zone structure, geometry and fluid processes; analog and numerical modeling studies of this subduction zone; studies on faulting or fluid processes in the upper plate; offshore studies on bathymetry and structure of the downgoing plate or the outer forearc; studies of Andean magmatism, volcanic processes and their link to tectonics and metallogenesis.

Co-organized by TS2
Convener: Christian Sippl | Co-conveners: Laura Giambiagi, Anne Socquet, Andres Tassara
GD9.5 EDI

Ocean island archipelagos are outstanding natural laboratories in which we can explore the complex interactions between tectonic, magmatic and mantle processes at a wide range of scales, from mantle-lithosphere interactions to outcrop (or smaller) level observations without forgetting the possible influence of interplay with external forcing. Within the Atlantic Ocean, several such sites exist, such as Iceland, the Azores or the Canaries, each with its own unique setting, dynamics and evolution.

This session aims to bring together contributions from geological, tectonic, geophysical, geodetic and geodynamic studies of the Atlantic Ocean islands and archipelagos. We particularly welcome contributions that might have a new perspective or methodological approach that aim to understand the recent
Icelandic rifting unrest and eruptions, the 2022 Sao Jorge Island (Azores) aborted eruption and the 2011-2012 El Hierro or 2021 La Palma eruptions in the Canary Islands.

We also welcome studies or datasets documenting past activity based on geological or geophysical approaches in/around eroded shield volcanoes across the Atlantic islands.

Co-organized by GMPV7/TS6
Convener: Jaime AlmeidaECSECS | Co-conveners: Pablo J. Gonzalez, Ana Ferreira, Stéphanie Dumont
GD9.6 EDI

The Tethyan Belt is the most prominent collisional zone on Earth, covering the vast area between far eastern Asia and Europe. The geological-tectonic evolution of the belt shows along-strike heterogeneity between its various regions, including the Indo-Burman Range, the Tibetan-Himalayan region, the Iranian Plateau, Anatolia and the Alps. The Tethyan Belt is the result of the subduction of the Tethyan Oceans, including significant terrane amalgamation, and collisional tectonics along the whole belt. The belt is today strongly affected by the ongoing convergence and collision between the Eurasian, African, Arabian and Indian plates. The long formation history and the variability of tectonic characteristics and deep structures of the belt make it a natural laboratory for understanding the accretion processes that have shaped the Earth through its history and have led to the formation of vast resources in the crust.

We invite contributions based on geological, tectonic, geophysical and geodynamic studies of the Tethyan Belt. We particularly invite interdisciplinary studies, which integrate observational data and interpretations based on a variety of methods. This session will include contributions on the whole suite of studies of the Tethyan Belt with the aim of providing a comprehensive overview of its formation and evolution.

Co-sponsored by ILP
Convener: Hans Thybo | Co-conveners: Nalan Lom, Yang Chu, Vahid Teknik
GD9.7 EDI

The Variscan orogeny, a mountain-building event that spanned a staggering more than 100 million years (c. 400-270 million years ago), has left its mark on structures stretching across Europe, North Africa, and even the Appalachian mountains of North America. This ancient event was shaped by the collision of two enormous landmasses—Laurussia and Gondwana—whose coastlines and boundaries were anything but straightforward. These irregular edges, formed when the Rheic and Paleo-Tethys oceans opened, played a crucial role in the way the continents converged. As the continents came together, the uneven boundaries triggered a wide variety of geological processes over different places and times. These processes included the subduction of oceanic crust, the extension of the upper continental plate, large-scale indentation of the crust, and the twisting and bending of mountain chains. Recent research, using tools like detrital zircon dating, geophysical studies, and tracking the pressure-temperature-time-deformation (P-T-t-D) history of rocks, has helped scientists get a clearer picture of the complex events that occurred during this time. To truly understand the paleogeography and geodynamics of the Variscan orogeny, scientists need to combine data from many different fields. We encourage contributions from all kinds of research, whether it’s looking at the structure of the Earth’s crust and mantle, the conditions under which mountain-building occurred, or how magma and metamorphic processes played a role. Studies from both sides of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic are welcome, helping us develop an exciting new perspective on this ancient and influential orogenic system.

Co-organized by TS2
Convener: Pavla Stipska | Co-conveners: Stanislaw Mazur, Pavlina Hasalová, Karel Schulmann
GD9.8 EDI

In the last decades, the tectonic and kinematic evolution of the Mediterranean region have been largely debated. This wide region includes several Permian to Mesozoic rift systems whose architecture were conditioned by crustal-scale shear zones developed in late/post-Variscan times. The polyphase evolution of these basins/crustal blocks is related to the early breakup of Pangea and the opening of the southern North Atlantic, the Alpine Tethys, and the Bay of Biscay, and their subsequent inversion and involvement in the Alpine orogeny during Upper Cretaceous to Cenozoic times. Cenozoic geodynamics led to a disrupted and diffuse Europe-Africa boundary which hampers easy paleogeographic reconstructions. No consensus on the kinematic, main tectonics, deformation history and paleogeography has been reached so far regarding the: 1) relative motions of Iberia and Europe; 2) the southern Iberia boundary and the evolution of the Corsica-Sardinia and the now dispersed AlKaPeCa blocks; 3) the pre-orogenic position and kinematic evolution of the Adria microplate.
We welcome contributions that address the kinematic, tectonic, and geodynamic evolution of prominent geologic features (such as structures, mountain belts, sedimentary basins, microplates, blocks and terranes) that have recorded the past configurations of the Iberia-Europe-Adria-Africa plate boundary(s), from Permian to the present-day. Our aim is to provide firm geological and chronological constraints to unravel the complex evolution of this diffuse plate boundary. We encourage submission of studies presenting new insights derived from different perspectives, including geology (tectonics, stratigraphy, petrology), geochronology, thermochronology, geochemistry, geophysics (paleomagnetism, seismicity, seismic imaging, seismic anisotropy, gravity), and modelling (both numerical and analogue).

Convener: Gaia Siravo | Co-conveners: Riccardo Asti, Pablo Granado, Nicolas Saspiturry, Fabio Feriozzi
TS2.4 EDI

The Southeast Asian region, at the convergence of the Eurasia, Indian-Australia, and Pacific plates, is a crucial area for studying Earth's tectonics. This region is surrounded by subduction zones, where these significant plates are convergent from the west, south and east to form a complicated, curved-shape subduction system. This tectonic setting makes Southeast Asia an important natural laboratory for understanding the interactions between plates, subduction processes, and mantle convection. Ongoing oceanic subduction has built extensive volcanic arcs characterized by active volcanoes and complex surface structures, contributing to the region’s high seismic and magmatic activity. However, significant knowledge gaps remain regarding the subsurface structure, from the shallow crust to the deep mantle, particularly beneath ocean basins, as well as the impact of subducted materials on island arc and intraplate magmatic activities. An integrated approach combining geology, geochemistry, geophysics, and numerical modelling is essential for further understanding Southeast Asia's dynamic processes and the influence of past and present tectonic interactions on the region’s geology and climate.

Co-organized by GD9
Convener: Miao DongECSECS | Co-conveners: Taoran Song, Xu Wang, Bagus Adi Wibowo, Yanghui Zhao
TS2.7 EDI

Tectonics in the Alpine-Mediterranean region has been studied intensively for almost two centuries, starting with field observations and increasingly accompanied by geochemical analyses, seismicity and geohazard studies, geophysical imaging, geodesy and geodynamic modelling. Significant progress has been made in understanding the tectonic processes in the region. The area has been the breeding ground for new concepts such as subduction, nappe tectonics or exhumation of ultra-high pressure metamorphic rocks. Due to its considerable complexity, the area has been and continues to be a test bed for new imaging and geodynamic modelling techniques. However, important questions regarding the driving forces, the three-dimensional lithospheric stress field, seismic coupling, and magma ascent remain unanswered. The session will serve as an interdisciplinary platform to present recent results and new concepts, as well as to highlight open questions and methodological challenges. We invite contributions from relevant fields that help to quantify geodynamic drivers of past and present plate kinematics and lithospheric deformation. In particular, presentations on the results of passive seismic experiments and quantitative comparisons of models, concepts, and field observations are welcome.

Co-organized by GD9
Convener: Claudia Piromallo | Co-conveners: Nevena Andrić-Tomašević, Marcel Thielmann, Silvia Crosetto

GD10 – Modelling, Data collection and Inversion

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Frederic Deschamps

GD10.1

Geological and geophysical data sets convey observations of physical processes governing the Earth’s evolution. Such data sets are widely varied and range from the internal structure of the Earth, plate kinematics, composition of geomaterials, estimation of physical conditions, dating of key geological events, thermal state of the Earth to more shallow processes such as natural and "engineered" reservoir dynamics in the subsurface.

The complexity in the physics of geological processes arises from their multi-physics nature, as they combine hydrological, thermal, chemical and mechanical processes. Multi-physics couplings are prone to nonlinear interactions ultimately leading to spontaneous localisation of flow and deformation. Understanding the couplings among those processes therefore requires the development of appropriate numerical tools.

Integrating high-quality data into physics-based predictive numerical simulations may lead to further constraining unknown key parameters within the models. Innovative inversion strategies, linking forward dynamic models with observables, and combining PDE solvers with machine-learning via differentiable programming is therefore an important research topic that will improve our knowledge of the governing physical parameters.

We invite contributions from the following two complementary themes:

#1 Computational advances associated with
- Alternative spatial and/or temporal discretisation for existing forward/inverse models
- Scalable HPC implementations of new and existing methodologies (GPUs / multi-core)
- Solver and preconditioner developments
- Combining PDEs with AI / Machine learning-based approaches (physics-informed ML)
- Automatic differentiation (AD) and differentiable programming
- Code and methodology comparisons (benchmarks)

#2 Physics advances associated with
- Development of partial differential equations to describe geological processes
- Inversion strategies and adjoint-based modelling
- Numerical model validation through comparison with observables (data)
- Scientific discovery enabled by 2D and 3D modelling
- Utilisation of coupled models to explore nonlinear interactions

The research output presented in this session can be submitted to the ongoing Special Issue (SI) in the EGU journal of Geoscientific Model Development (GMD): https://www.geoscientific-model-development.net/articles_and_preprints/scheduled_sis.html

Co-organized by EMRP1/GI5
Convener: Ludovic Räss | Co-conveners: Boris Kaus, Ivan Utkin, Thibault Duretz
GD10.2

Mantle circulation simulations are now capable of a high level of precision and complexity that allows the creation of numerous "Earth-like" models. Likewise, advances in observation resources and methods have improved the quantity and quality of data on the Earth's interior. Combining these developments presents a unique opportunity to enhance our understanding of mantle dynamics and evolution over geological time scales. However, the exact physics leading to Earth-like simulations remains debated (e.g. the existence of a primordial layer, the core-mantle-boundary temperature, etc...). Furthermore, constraining geodynamical simulations or assessing their predictions with observational data can be challenging, for example, due to data noise, issues related to inverse methods, or uncertainty propagation.

This session aims to explore how observational data can be used to constrain or assess geodynamical simulations and advance our knowledge of the physical processes that govern the Earth's mantle. We invite submissions from various fields, including seismology, geochemistry, mineral physics or geomagnetism where observations have the potential to constrain geodynamical simulations or assess their predictions. The nature of these studies can be purely observational, exploring the inversion of data to possible Earth models or proposing metrics to assess how Earth-like a model is.

This session also aims to compare these observations and address their potential to constrain or assess geodynamical simulations, with the ultimate goal of better understanding which parameters may cause models to be more or less Earth-like.

Convener: Franck LatallerieECSECS | Co-conveners: Thomas Duvernay, Emma Chambers, Sarah Jane Fowler, James Panton
EOS4.8 EDI

Sitting under a tree, you feel the spark of an idea, and suddenly everything falls into place. The following days and tests confirm: you have made a magnificent discovery — so the classical story of scientific genius goes…

But science as a human activity is error-prone, and might be more adequately described as "trial and error", or as a process of successful "tinkering" (Knorr, 1979). Thus we want to turn the story around, and ask you to share 1) those ideas that seemed magnificent but turned out not to be, and 2) the errors, bugs, and mistakes in your work that made the scientific road bumpy. What ideas were torn down or did not work, and what concepts survived in the ashes or were robust despite errors? We explicitly solicit Blunders, Unexpected Glitches, and Surprises (BUGS) from modeling and field or lab experiments and from all disciplines of the Geosciences.

Handling mistakes and setbacks is a key skill of scientists. Yet, we publish only those parts of our research that did work. That is also because a study may have better chances to be accepted for publication in the scientific literature if it confirms an accepted theory or if it reaches a positive result (publication bias). Conversely, the cases that fail in their test of a new method or idea often end up in a drawer (which is why publication bias is also sometimes called the "file drawer effect"). This is potentially a waste of time and resources within our community as other scientists may set about testing the same idea or model setup without being aware of previous failed attempts.

In the spirit of open science, we want to bring the BUGS out of the drawers and into the spotlight. In a friendly atmosphere, we will learn from each others' mistakes, understand the impact of errors and abandoned paths onto our work, and generate new insights for our science or scientific practice.

Here are some ideas for contributions that we would love to see:
- Ideas that sounded good at first, but turned out to not work.
- Results that presented themselves as great in the first place but turned out to be caused by a bug or measurement error.
- Errors and slip-ups that resulted in insights.
- Failed experiments and negative results.
- Obstacles and dead ends you found and would like to warn others about.

--
Knorr, Karin D. “Tinkering toward Success: Prelude to a Theory of Scientific Practice.” Theory and Society 8, no. 3 (1979): 347–76.

Co-organized by BG0/EMRP1/ESSI4/GD10/GI1/GI6/GM11/GMVP1/PS0/SM2/SSS11/ST4
Convener: Ulrike ProskeECSECS | Co-conveners: Laetitia Le Pourhiet, Daniel Klotz, Nobuaki Fuji, Jonas Pyschik
GMVP1.4

Our comprehension of petrological processes across a wide range of scales relies on measurable effects observed in a final state—compositional zoning of minerals, residual stresses around inclusions, and reaction textures—while their underlying causes remain inaccessible. Consequently, our approach to understanding these processes is intrinsically related to the solution of inverse problems, which are central to various disciplines such as geodynamics, petrology, geochronology, and petrochronology.
However, the inherent complexity, heterogeneity, and often incomplete nature of petrological data such as diffusion models, age distributions and thermobarometric determinations can result in multiple interpretations of the same process. This is characteristic of inverse problems with no unique solution (so-called ill-posed problems), which differ from the well-posed problems that have a unique solution as encountered in other scientific fields. In ill-posed problems, models are highly sensitive to even minor input data variations. To address these challenges, geoscientists intuitively integrate diverse data sources and methodologies such as modeling, experimental simulations, field observations, and geochemical analyses to narrow the range of potential solutions and reduce the degrees of freedom in complex geoscientific problems.
We invite contributions utilizing numerical, experimental, and natural observations to quantify the nature and rates of petrological and geological processes across various spatial and temporal scales. We are particularly interested in studies addressing the non-uniqueness of the interpretation of processes within a broad spectrum of fields, including, but not limited to, petrology, geodynamics, geochronology, and petrochronology. Our session welcomes research focused on the assessment of uncertainties in modeling within the geosciences, such as those involving numerical, thermodynamic, mechanical, experimental, analog, and geochemical simulations.
By exploring these diverse areas, collaboration and discussion will advance the methods used to address the challenges of non-unique geoscientific problems and improve our collective ability to interpret and model Earth's dynamic processes.

Co-organized by GD10
Convener: Simon SchornECSECS | Co-conveners: Mattia L. Mazzucchelli, Dominik Sorger
ESSI2.13 EDI

Recent Earth System Sciences (ESS) datasets, such as those resulting from very high resolution numerical modelling, have increased both in terms of precision and size. These datasets are central to the advancement of ESS for the benefit of all stakeholders, public policymaking on climate change and to the performance of modern applications such as Machine Learning (ML) and forecasting.

The storage and shareability of ESS datasets have become an important discussion point in the scientific community. It is apparent that datasets produced by state-of-the-art applications are becoming so large that even current high-capacity data centres and infrastructures are incapable of storing, let alone ensuring the usability and processability of such datasets. The needs of ongoing and upcoming community activities, such as various digital twin centred projects or the 7th Phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP7) already stretch the abilities of current infrastructures. With future investment in hardware being limited, a viable way forward is to explore the possibilities of data reduction and compression with the needs of stakeholders in mind. Therefore, the use of data compression has grown in interest to 1) make the data weight more manageable, 2) speed up data transfer times and resource needs and 3) without reducing the quality of scientific analyses.

Concurrently, replicability is another major concern for ESS and downstream applications. Being able to reproduce the most recent ML and forecasting results and analyses thereof has become mandatory to develop new methods and integrated workflows for operational settings. On the other hand, the data accuracy needed to produce reliable downstream products has not yet been thoroughly investigated. Therefore, research on data reduction and prediction interpretability helps to 1) understand the relationship between the datasets and the resulting prediction and 2) increase the stability of prediction.

This session discusses the latest advances in both data compression and reduction for ESS datasets, focusing on:
1) Approaches and techniques to enhance shareability of high-volume ESS datasets: data compression (lossless and lossy) or reduction approaches.
2) Understanding the effects of reduction and replicability: feature selection, feature fusion, sensitivity to data, active learning.
3) Analyses of the effect of reduced/compressed data on numerical weather prediction and/or machine learning methods.

Solicited authors:
Milan Klöwer
Co-organized by AS5/CL5/GD10/GI2/NP4
Convener: Clément BouvierECSECS | Co-conveners: Karsten Peters-von Gehlen, Juniper Tyree, Oriol Tinto, Sara Faghih-Naini
ESSI3.2 EDI

Almost a decade ago, the FAIR data guiding principles were introduced to the broader research community. These principles proposed a framework to increase the reusability of data in and across domains during and after the completion of e.g. research projects. In subdomains of the Earth System Sciences (ESS), like atmospheric sciences or partly geosciences, data reuse across institutions and geographical borders was already well-established, supported by community-specific and cross-domain standards like netCDF-CF, geospatial standards (e.g.OGC). Further, authoritative data producers such as CMIPs were already using Persistent Identifiers and corresponding handle systems for data published in their repositories – so it was often thought and communicated this data is “FAIR by design”.

However, fully implementing FAIR principles, particularly machine-actionability—the core idea behind FAIR—has proven challenging. Despite progress in awareness, standard-compliant data sharing, and the automation of data provenance, the ESS community continues to struggle to reach a community-wide consensus on the design, adoption, interpretation and implementation of the FAIR principles.

In this session, we invite contributions from all fields in Earth System Sciences that provide insights, case studies, and innovative approaches to advancing the adoption of the FAIR data principles. We aim to foster a collaborative dialogue on the progress our community has made, the challenges that lie ahead, and the strategies needed to achieve widespread acceptance and implementation of these principles, ultimately enhancing the future of data management and reuse.

We invite contributions focusing on, but not necessarily limited to,
- Challenges and solutions in interpreting and implementing the FAIR principles in different sub-domains of the ESS
- FAIR onboarding strategies for research communities
- Case studies of successful FAIR data implementation (or partial implementation) in ESS at infrastructure and research project level
- Methods and approaches to gauge the impact of FAIR data implementation in ESS
- Considerations on how AI might help to implement FAIR
- Future direction for FAIR data in ESS

Co-organized by AS5/GD10/GI2
Convener: Barbara Magagna | Co-conveners: Ivonne Anders, Karsten Peters-von Gehlen, Anne Fouilloux, Jie Dodo Xu
TS5.1 EDI | PICO

Geologic processes are generally too slow, too rare, or too deep to be observed in-situ and to be monitored with a resolution high enough to understand their dynamics. Analogue experiments and numerical simulation have thus become an integral part of the Earth explorer's toolbox to select, formulate, and test hypotheses on the origin and evolution of geological phenomena.

To foster synergy between the rather independently evolving experimentalists and modellers we provide a multi-disciplinary platform to discuss research on tectonics, structural geology, rock mechanics, geodynamics, volcanology, geomorphology, and sedimentology.

We therefore invite contributions demonstrating the state-of-the-art in analogue and numerical / analytical modelling on a variety of spatial and temporal scales, varying from earthquakes, landslides and volcanic eruptions to sedimentary processes, plate tectonics and landscape evolution. We especially welcome those presentations that discuss model strengths and weaknesses, challenge the existing limits, or compare/combine the different modelling techniques to realistically simulate and better understand the Earth's behaviour.

Co-organized by GD10/GM7/SSP1
Convener: Thorben SchöfischECSECS | Co-conveners: Betti Hegyi, Pauline Gayrin, Ágnes Király, Riccardo Reitano

GD11 – Geodynamics and society: Short Courses, EDI, and General Interest

Sub-Programme Group Scientific Officer: Jeroen van Hunen

SC 3.11 EDI

This short course aims to introduce non-geologists to the geological, petrological, and morphological principles that are used by geologists to study system earth.

The data available to geologists is often minimal, incomplete, and only partly representative for the geological history of our planet. To overcome these challenges, geologists need to learn the necessary observational skills, field, and analytical techniques needed to acquire and interpret the data, in addition to developing a logical way of thinking.

In this course we cover the following subjects:
1) Introduction to the principles of geology.
2) Geochronology and isotope geochemistry.
3) Structural geology and deformation.
4) Landscape morphology as tectonic constraints.
5) Q&A!

Our aim is not to make you the next specialist in geology, but we will try and make you aware of the challenges a geologist faces when they go out into the field or work in the lab. We will also address currently used methodologies for the collection of geological data, to give other earth scientists a feel for the capabilities and limitations of geological research.

This 60-minute short course is part of a quintet of introductory 101 courses on Geodynamics, Seismology, Tectonics, and Geodesy. All courses are led by experts who aim to make complex Earth science concepts accessible to non-experts.

Co-organized by GD11/GM12
Convener: Richard WesselsECSECS | Co-convener: Veronica Peverelli
SC 3.12

During this short course, which is open to anyone with a general interest in plate tectonic processes, we will introduce the participants to the principles and application of analogue models in interpreting tectonic systems.

Tectonic processes act at different spatial and temporal scales. What we observe today in the field or via direct and indirect measurement is often just a snapshot of processes that stretch over hundreds or thousands of km, and take millions of years to unfold. Thus, it is challenging for researchers to interpret and recontrust the dynamic evolution of tectonic systems. Analogue modeling provides a tool to overcome this limitation, allowing for the physical reproduction of tectonic processes on practical temporal and spatial scales (Myr → hrs, km → cm/m). Of course, the reliability of analogue models is a function of the assumptions and simplifications involved, but still their usefulness in interpreting data is outstanding.

In this course we will go through the following outline:
- Aims and history of analogue modelling
- Model setups and materials
- Model scaling
- Monitoring techniques
- Interpreting model results
- Interactive demonstration: Running a live model :)
- Q&A

The final aim of this short course will be to present analogue modeling as a valid technique to be applied side by side with observations and data from the real world to improve our interpretation of the evolution of natural tectonic systems. We also intend to inspire the course participants to develop and run their own analogue tectonic modeling projects, and to provide them with the basic skills, as well as directions to find the additional resources and knowledge required to do so.

This short course is part of a quintet of introductory 101 courses on Geodesy, Geodynamics, Geology, Seismology, and Tectonic Modelling. All courses are led by experts who aim to make complex Earth science concepts accessible to non-experts.

Co-organized by GD11/NH12
Convener: Frank ZwaanECSECS | Co-conveners: Ágnes Király, Michael Rudolf, Riccardo Reitano
SC 3.10 EDI

Discover the basics of Geodesy and geodetic data! Geodetic data, from GNSS to gravity measurements, play a crucial role in various Earth sciences, including hydrology, glaciology, geodynamics, oceanography, and seismology. Curious about what these data can (and cannot) tell us? This short course offers a crash course in core geodetic concepts, giving you the insights you need to better understand the advantages and limitations of geodetic data. While you won’t become a full-fledged geodesist by the end, you’ll walk away with a clearer picture of how to use these datasets across various fields. Led by scientists from the Geodesy division, this course is open to all, whether you frequently work with geodetic data or are simply curious about what geodesists do. Expect lively discussions and practical insights. For all geodesists, get the chance to learn what non-geodesists need when working with geodetic data!

This 60-minute short course is part of a quintet of introductory 101 courses on Geodesy, Geodynamics, Geology, Seismology, and Tectonic Modelling. All courses are led by experts who aim to make complex Earth science concepts accessible to non-experts.

Co-organized by CR8/GD11/GM12/HS11
Convener: Rebekka Steffen | Co-conveners: Öykü Koç, Eva Boergens, Benedikt Soja, Thomas Knudsen
SC 3.16 EDI

Software plays a pivotal role in various scientific disciplines. Research software may include source code files, algorithms, computational workflows, and executables. It refers mainly to code meant to produce data, less so, for example, plotting scripts one might create to analyze this data. An example of research software in our field are computational models of the environment. Models can aid pivotal decision-making by quantifying the outcomes of different scenarios, e.g., varying emission scenarios. How can we ensure the robustness and longevity of such research software? This short course teaches the concept of sustainable research software. Sustainable research software is easy to update and extend. It will be easier to maintain and extend that software with new ideas and stay in sync with the most recent scientific findings. This maintainability should also be possible for researchers who did not originally develop the code, which will ultimately lead to more reproducible science.

This short course will delve into sustainable research software development principles and practices. The topics include:
- Properties and metrics of sustainable research software
- Writing clear, modular, reusable code that adheres to coding standards and best practices of sustainable research software (e.g., documentation, unit testing, FAIR for research software).
- Using simple code quality metrics to develop high-quality code
- Documenting your code using platforms like Sphinx for Python

We will apply these principles to a case study of a reprogrammed version of the global WaterGAP Hydrological Model (https://github.com/HydrologyFrankfurt/ReWaterGAP). We will showcase its current state in a GitHub environment along with example source code. The model is written in Python but is also accessible to non-python users. The principles demonstrated apply to all coding languages and platforms.

This course is intended for early-career researchers who create and use research models and software. Basic programming or software development experience is required. The course has limited seats available on a first-come-first-served basis.

Co-organized by ESSI3/GD11/GM12
Convener: Emmanuel Nyenah | Co-conveners: Robert Reinecke, Victoria Bauer
EOS4.6 EDI

Science’s “open era” is here (to stay?). Data and software repositories make it possible to share and collectively develop tools and resources. Diamond open-access publishing and pre-print servers are breaking barriers to knowledge exchange. Free virtual meetings make science more accessible to those interested in listening, or speaking.

The benefits for the community are clear—better communication and more collaboration foster scientific advancement. It is therefore surprising that the vast majority of data-, tool-, and knowledge-sharing initiatives rely on the community and the community alone, without financial support from funding bodies and more often than not lacking the recognition they deserve.

We aim to bring together individuals and teams who have, in any way, served the wider geoscience community through knowledge, data, or tool creation and/or distribution. Such efforts include—but are not limited to—online learning platforms, transdisciplinary databases, open-access software and publishing.

Ultimately, this session seeks to:
1. Be a space for sharing, advertising, discussing, and recognising the value of existing resources and initiatives
2. Discuss the challenges faced by those behind them (i.e., lack of funding and institutional support) and possible strategies to eliminate these
3. Inspire new efforts, initiatives, and projects

Co-organized by AS6/CR8/GD11/GM11
Convener: Fabio Crameri | Co-convener: Lucia Perez-Diaz
EOS3.1 EDI

Following the success of previous years, this session will explore reasons for the under-representation of different groups (gender identities, sexual orientations, racial and cultural backgrounds, abilities, religions, nationality or geography, socioeconomic status, ages, career stages, etc.) by welcoming debate among scientists, decision-makers and policy analysts in the geosciences.

The session will focus on both obstacles that contribute to under-representation and on best practices and innovative ideas to remove those obstacles. Contributions are solicited on the following topics:

- Role models to inspire and further motivate others (life experience and/or their contributions to promote equality)
- Imbalanced representation, preferably supported by data, for awards, medals, grants, high-level positions, invited talks and papers
- Perceived and real barriers to inclusion (personally, institutionally, culturally)
- Recommendations for new and innovative strategies to identify and overcome barriers
- COVID-related data, discussions and initiatives
- Gender Equality Plans (GEP) in European host institutions: the good, the bad, and the ugly
- Best practices and strategies to move beyond barriers, including:
• successful mentoring programmes;
• networks that work;
• specific funding schemes;
• examples of host institutions initiatives;

This session is co-organised with the support of the European Research Council (ERC).

Co-organized by AS6/BG0/GD11/GM11/OS5/PS0/SSS12, co-sponsored by AGU and JpGU
Convener: Claudia Jesus-Rydin | Co-conveners: Stefanie Kaboth-Bahr, Alberto Montanari, Hori, S. Rie, Billy Williams
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Science for policy is the practice of integrating scientific knowledge into policymaking to ensure that scientific evidence is available for policymakers when making decisions. There are some basic considerations for engaging in science for policy that can help get you started, from considering how you frame your message, looking for windows of opportunity, and more.

This session will start by diving into some of the basics of policy, enabling participants to understand what science for policy is and how they can start engaging with it. The tips for engaging are relevant to all career stages and will also help you understand the different paths available depending on the level of engagement you are interested in.
The session will then introduce experts working on the science for policy interface to highlight specific skills that researchers can develop to increase their policy impact and provide some practical examples.

Co-organized by GD11/NH12
Convener: Chloe Hill | Co-conveners: Ilias Grampas, Lene Topp