Earth and Environmental Science

Dr Christopher Spencer is an Associate Professor and co-director of the Queen’s Facility of Isotope Research at Queen’s University in Canada. He did his BSc and MSc at Brigham Young University, PhD at the University of St Andrews, and a postdoctoral apprenticeship at the British Geological Survey. Prior to coming to Queen’s, he was a research fellow at Curtin University from 2015 to 2020. His research is focused on understanding the evolution of plate tectonic process and interactions between the atmosphere, biosphere, and lithosphere through geologic time. Link to the 2024 GAC W.W. Hutchison Medalist.

“Biogeodynamics: the next step in crustal evolution”
There is a growing consensus that the evolution of tectonomagmatic processes played a central role in the evolution of life and the atmosphere. These processes supply bioessential nutrients to the hydrosphere and atmosphere which in turn facilitate radiation and proliferation of Earth’s biota. The emerging field of biogeodynamics examines the interactions between Earth's interior, surface, atmosphere, ocean, climate, and life. In this seminar, I will explore the variety of ways we can trace the influence of the lithosphere on the biosphere and atmosphere, but also how the latter actors influence the former. There is a strong correlation between the rise of continental freeboard and the flux of phosphorus to the oceans. This is directly followed by the oxygenation of the atmosphere which is traced by sulfur isotopes in sedimentary rocks which are in turn recycled in sediment-derived melts. Furthermore, evidence is mounting that the evolution of the biosphere on land is directly changing sedimentation patterns which also influence the composition of magmatic rocks. The next steps in testing these hypothesis will require synthesizing wide arrays of data that span numerous disparate disciplines and methodologies. This will include continued exploration in novel isotopic proxies that hold significant promise in testing biogeodynamic hypotheses.

November 5, 16:00 - 17:00, Huggins 336.

Snacks will be available for those in attendance.