Marine Geophysics probes how the earth works deep below its oceans and interacts with them. This theme is concerned with the application of gravity, magnetic, heat flow, and general seismic methods and imaging techniques to study the structure of the earth beneath the oceans across a broad range of scales and resolution wavelengths. It is intimately associated with the concepts and problems of seafloor spreading, continental drift, and plate tectonics, which are in turn are tied to sedimentary basin-scale problems and resource exploration. A specific research aim is to understand the processes that forged the development of the North Atlantic lithosphere west of and including Ireland. In a more global context, relationships to the continental margins and sedimentary basins of North America are also investigated. This aspect is crucial in understanding the generation and accumulation of hydrocarbon reserves on both the Irish and Canadian continental margins. The research also relates to the history of ocean circulation patterns and climate change, which is preserved in sediments across the North Atlantic, interactions between the Earths hydrosphere and lithosphere and between geological and biological systems. It contributes to enabling the sustainable use of seafloor resources into the future.
Ongoing research in marine geophysics comprise the following:
Insitu Marine Laboratory for Geosystems Research (iMARL)
iMARL the “Insitu Marine Laboratory for Geosystems Research” is a network of various types of ocean floor located sensors, hosted by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS). It comprises broadband Ocean Bottom Seismographs (OBS), broadband acoustic sensors, and sensors for measuring absolute water pressure & temperature at the ocean floor. A system capable of detecting tsunamis also forms part of the infrastructure. The sensor pool is largely mobile and can, in principle, be deployed around the world. However the current focus is on the NE Atlantic, offshore Ireland. One instrument will be fixed and will ultimately become a real-time sensing offshore element of the Irish National Seismic Network (www.insn.ie)
Strapped to sea-bed landers and deployed on the sea floor iMARL will allow for the detection of offshore earthquakes and offshore storms, as well as noise in the ocean and biologically generated acoustic signals (e.g. from cetaceans). Impacts from this equipment will include: natural resources quantification, natural hazard estimation, environmental and baseline climate related insitu ocean monitoring and the monitoring of marine noise pollution.
Through an award to the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) the iMARL infrastructure is funded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) with support from the Geological Survey, Ireland.
Microseism generation in the North-East Atlantic
In January 2016, 10 Broad Band Ocean Bottom Seismographs (OBSs) units were deployed across the shelf offshore Donegal and out into the Rockall Trough. The main goal of the survey is to investigate the generation mechanism as well as spatial and temporal distributions of dominant microseism source regions in NE Atlantic. Compared to earthquakes, microseisms represent background seismic noise generated by ocean wave pressure fluctuations on the sea floor which produce low frequency seismic waves. For more details on this project click here (insert link).
Location map of the OBS stations and seafloor bathymetry.
Integrated geophysical and geological study of the Porcupine Basin
DIAS Geophysics continues its research on the Porcupine Basin by integrating wide-angle seismic data, ocean bottom seismometer data along with terrestrial based seismic stations to quantify variations in crustal geometry and seismic properties (for inferring petrological affinity of the rocks) along the basin axis and towards mainland Ireland with the aim of better understanding its geological evolution. For more information on this research click here (insert link)
Bathymetry map of the Porcupine Basin depicting the location of WAS lines of the project (red lines), as well as the location of ocean bottom seismometers (yellow circles) and land stations (red triangles) used to record the data.
Ocean and Tidal Modelling
Oceans play an important role in the Earth system. At DIAS Geophysics, ongoing research focuses on wind and buoyancy driven circulations as well as tidally driven circulations within our oceans. Collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) Swarm satellite mission is investigating the magnetic signatures of the ocean circulation systems. The motivation is that the ocean-induced magnetic field may provide a greater understanding of ocean circulations. For more information about these research areas click here. (insert link)
A snapshot of the ocean surface elevations (in metres) generated by the tidal force.
WAVEOBS
Ocean waves generate continuous low amplitude seismic signals, known as microseisms, that are recorded on seismometers globally. The WAVEOBS project was established with three primary goals; to get a better fundamental understanding of microseism sources; to investigate the use of ocean generated microseisms (OGM) as real time ocean wave height data; and to investigate their use as a climate proxy. Seismic arrays established in Ireland under the WAVEOBS project allow the monitoring and mapping of local microseism generation areas near Ireland. For more information on this project click here. (insert link)
Source locations of microseisms off the west coast of Ireland
La Soufriere volcano raised to alert level Red
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I. – 6:30pm April 8th, 2021 - Scientists have observed a significant increase in activity at La Soufriere volcano which has prompted The Government of SVG to raise the volcanic alert level 1/7 Retweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
Which mechanisms drive the triggering of volcanic unrest? What role does changes in volcanic materials play? Novel ground motion measurements can help answer these questions. And so can you, in a @SPIN_itn PhD project at @dias_geophysics! Apply now: spin-itn.eu/esr41Retweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
1942
Dr. Sheila Tinney of Galway
Pioneering Irish mathematical physicist. Aged 23 she earned her PhD under future Nobel prize winner Max Born on "Stability in Crystals"
Image credit: Tinney Family, Mathematics Ireland
#Science#Ireland#Galway#History#Quantum .@DIAS_DublinRetweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
Our 1st speaker of the April 8th #ShakeMeetup is @seismotom!
Thomas Lecocq is a #Seismologist at the Royal Observatory of Belgium who created the open source code to study the global decrease in seismic noise due to the past lockdown.
➡️ buff.ly/3vXYS4nRetweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
This is 1 year ago. That idea, on April Fools' Day... Less than 4 month later, the 76-author article was published online! What a year, damn 2020. The worst and the best! Science, our way! Sharing knowledge, codes, data... is THE way. I'm a f* open-scientist! Thanks to you all!❤ twitter.com/seismotom/stat…Retweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
How is Tomorrow's Cities working to engage different stakeholders? How has the Covid-19 pandemic impacted our ability to engage? And what are we learning about what works and what doesn’t? Read this blog to see our MEL team's analysis: tomorrowscities.org/stakeholder-en…
📸@SIAS_SouthasiaRetweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
1933, Erwin Schrödinger
Austrian-Irish physicist
Éamon de Valera (himself a mathematician!) personally persuaded Schrödinger to join the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies in 1939.
Image: Nobel foundation, Wikimedia Commons #physicist#Clontarf#dublinireland#DeOldifyRetweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
1942 @DIAS_Dublin
First row from left:
Sheila Tinney, Pádraig de Brún, Paul Dirac, Éamon de Valera, Arthur Conway, Arthur Eddington, Erwin Schrödinger, Albert Joseph McConnell.
Image: DIAS, Wikicommons
#Ireland#Dublin#Science#HistoryRetweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
Time to get out your camera or phone, and look up to the heavens and see what you can capture 📸
Closing date for the @DIAS_Dublin Reach for the Stars competition is 2nd April.
alicepr.com/featured/final…Retweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
Activity is gradually increasing at #Etna's Southeast Crater, building up toward the 16th paroxysmal eruptive episode in little more than five weeks. Loud detonations audible in the southern sector of the volcano. View is from home in Tremestieri Etneo Retweeted by
DIAS Geophysics
Blue regions are at the lower limit and show quiescent periods. Red regions are at the high limit and signify active periods.
#DIASdiscovers#WorldMetDay
Links can be seen between wave height and seismic amplitudes.
Below are wave heights from Met Eireann's M6 buoy, seismic displacement from a seismometer in western Donegal (12km from the coast) and a spectrogram of the seismic data from April 2012.
#WorldMetDay#OceanScience
We are collaborators with @MetEireann and @DIASAstronomy in 'Space Weather' research and we are recording natural magnetic and electric field variations in County Kerry to assist this exciting research.
#DIASdiscovers#worldmetday
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Marine Geophysics
Marine Geophysics probes how the earth works deep below its oceans and interacts with them. This theme is concerned with the application of gravity, magnetic, heat flow, and general seismic methods and imaging techniques to study the structure of the earth beneath the oceans across a broad range of scales and resolution wavelengths. It is intimately associated with the concepts and problems of seafloor spreading, continental drift, and plate tectonics, which are in turn are tied to sedimentary basin-scale problems and resource exploration. A specific research aim is to understand the processes that forged the development of the North Atlantic lithosphere west of and including Ireland. In a more global context, relationships to the continental margins and sedimentary basins of North America are also investigated. This aspect is crucial in understanding the generation and accumulation of hydrocarbon reserves on both the Irish and Canadian continental margins. The research also relates to the history of ocean circulation patterns and climate change, which is preserved in sediments across the North Atlantic, interactions between the Earths hydrosphere and lithosphere and between geological and biological systems. It contributes to enabling the sustainable use of seafloor resources into the future.
Ongoing research in marine geophysics comprise the following:
Insitu Marine Laboratory for Geosystems Research (iMARL)
iMARL the “Insitu Marine Laboratory for Geosystems Research” is a network of various types of ocean floor located sensors, hosted by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS). It comprises broadband Ocean Bottom Seismographs (OBS), broadband acoustic sensors, and sensors for measuring absolute water pressure & temperature at the ocean floor. A system capable of detecting tsunamis also forms part of the infrastructure. The sensor pool is largely mobile and can, in principle, be deployed around the world. However the current focus is on the NE Atlantic, offshore Ireland. One instrument will be fixed and will ultimately become a real-time sensing offshore element of the Irish National Seismic Network (www.insn.ie)
Strapped to sea-bed landers and deployed on the sea floor iMARL will allow for the detection of offshore earthquakes and offshore storms, as well as noise in the ocean and biologically generated acoustic signals (e.g. from cetaceans). Impacts from this equipment will include: natural resources quantification, natural hazard estimation, environmental and baseline climate related insitu ocean monitoring and the monitoring of marine noise pollution.
Through an award to the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) the iMARL infrastructure is funded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) with support from the Geological Survey, Ireland.
Microseism generation in the North-East Atlantic
In January 2016, 10 Broad Band Ocean Bottom Seismographs (OBSs) units were deployed across the shelf offshore Donegal and out into the Rockall Trough. The main goal of the survey is to investigate the generation mechanism as well as spatial and temporal distributions of dominant microseism source regions in NE Atlantic. Compared to earthquakes, microseisms represent background seismic noise generated by ocean wave pressure fluctuations on the sea floor which produce low frequency seismic waves. For more details on this project click here (insert link).
Location map of the OBS stations and seafloor bathymetry.
Integrated geophysical and geological study of the Porcupine Basin
DIAS Geophysics continues its research on the Porcupine Basin by integrating wide-angle seismic data, ocean bottom seismometer data along with terrestrial based seismic stations to quantify variations in crustal geometry and seismic properties (for inferring petrological affinity of the rocks) along the basin axis and towards mainland Ireland with the aim of better understanding its geological evolution. For more information on this research click here (insert link)
Bathymetry map of the Porcupine Basin depicting the location of WAS lines of the project (red lines), as well as the location of ocean bottom seismometers (yellow circles) and land stations (red triangles) used to record the data.
Ocean and Tidal Modelling
Oceans play an important role in the Earth system. At DIAS Geophysics, ongoing research focuses on wind and buoyancy driven circulations as well as tidally driven circulations within our oceans. Collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) Swarm satellite mission is investigating the magnetic signatures of the ocean circulation systems. The motivation is that the ocean-induced magnetic field may provide a greater understanding of ocean circulations. For more information about these research areas click here. (insert link)
A snapshot of the ocean surface elevations (in metres) generated by the tidal force.
WAVEOBS
Ocean waves generate continuous low amplitude seismic signals, known as microseisms, that are recorded on seismometers globally. The WAVEOBS project was established with three primary goals; to get a better fundamental understanding of microseism sources; to investigate the use of ocean generated microseisms (OGM) as real time ocean wave height data; and to investigate their use as a climate proxy. Seismic arrays established in Ireland under the WAVEOBS project allow the monitoring and mapping of local microseism generation areas near Ireland. For more information on this project click here. (insert link)
Source locations of microseisms off the west coast of Ireland
Geophysics
La Soufriere volcano raised to alert level Red St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I. – 6:30pm April 8th, 2021 - Scientists have observed a significant increase in activity at La Soufriere volcano which has prompted The Government of SVG to raise the volcanic alert level 1/7 Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
A nice new collection of work on volcanic, earthquake, and landslide hazards from the nature group. Lots of interesting stuff here, including our recent paper on Sierra Negra with @GeosciencesEd, @volcano_dr, @IGecuador, @dias_geophysics, et al. twitter.com/NatureComms/st… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
A new #volcanic #fissure opened up yesterday noon, NE of Geldingadalir, where an #eruption has been ongoing since 19 March. #Magma is flowing at a rather fast pace from the ~200m long fissure to Merardalir valley #EUROVOLC #volcanichazard #volcanicrisk Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Which mechanisms drive the triggering of volcanic unrest? What role does changes in volcanic materials play? Novel ground motion measurements can help answer these questions. And so can you, in a @SPIN_itn PhD project at @dias_geophysics! Apply now: spin-itn.eu/esr41 Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
1942 Dr. Sheila Tinney of Galway Pioneering Irish mathematical physicist. Aged 23 she earned her PhD under future Nobel prize winner Max Born on "Stability in Crystals" Image credit: Tinney Family, Mathematics Ireland #Science #Ireland #Galway #History #Quantum .@DIAS_Dublin Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Our 1st speaker of the April 8th #ShakeMeetup is @seismotom! Thomas Lecocq is a #Seismologist at the Royal Observatory of Belgium who created the open source code to study the global decrease in seismic noise due to the past lockdown. ➡️ buff.ly/3vXYS4n Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
This is 1 year ago. That idea, on April Fools' Day... Less than 4 month later, the 76-author article was published online! What a year, damn 2020. The worst and the best! Science, our way! Sharing knowledge, codes, data... is THE way. I'm a f* open-scientist! Thanks to you all!❤ twitter.com/seismotom/stat… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
How is Tomorrow's Cities working to engage different stakeholders? How has the Covid-19 pandemic impacted our ability to engage? And what are we learning about what works and what doesn’t? Read this blog to see our MEL team's analysis: tomorrowscities.org/stakeholder-en… 📸@SIAS_Southasia Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
M2.6 & M2.3 earthquakes occurred this morning in the Rockall Trough. Confirmed by INSN operated by @dias_geophysics @DIAS_Dublin in co-operation with @GeolSurvIE . Details tinyurl.com/3csjumm2 @k_verbruggen @GeoSurveyNI #DIASdiscovers
1933, Erwin Schrödinger Austrian-Irish physicist Éamon de Valera (himself a mathematician!) personally persuaded Schrödinger to join the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies in 1939. Image: Nobel foundation, Wikimedia Commons #physicist #Clontarf #dublinireland #DeOldify Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
1942 @DIAS_Dublin First row from left: Sheila Tinney, Pádraig de Brún, Paul Dirac, Éamon de Valera, Arthur Conway, Arthur Eddington, Erwin Schrödinger, Albert Joseph McConnell. Image: DIAS, Wikicommons #Ireland #Dublin #Science #History Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Sierra Negra—the basaltic caldera found on the Galápagos Islands—went through resurgence after eruption, a rarity for this type of volcano. Story by @Sarah_Derouin, research by @AndyFBell (@EdinburghUni & @GeosciencesEd), @volcano_dr (@PennState) et al. eos.org/articles/obser… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Time to get out your camera or phone, and look up to the heavens and see what you can capture 📸 Closing date for the @DIAS_Dublin Reach for the Stars competition is 2nd April. alicepr.com/featured/final… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
"Government approves landmark Climate Bill putting Ireland on the path to net-zero emissions by 2050." The case emissions reductions couldn't be clearer than in these visualisations. @EPAIreland @MetEireann @KOSullivanIT gov.ie/en/press-relea… youtube.com/watch?v=Rw6Bsa… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Did you miss the IOP Tyndall Lecture on Monday with @DIASAstronomy's @petertgallagher ? Great news it's now available on YouTube. #DIASdiscovers twitter.com/IOP_Ireland/st… Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Activity is gradually increasing at #Etna's Southeast Crater, building up toward the 16th paroxysmal eruptive episode in little more than five weeks. Loud detonations audible in the southern sector of the volcano. View is from home in Tremestieri Etneo Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
#WorldMetDay is 23 March. The #Ocean, our #climate and #weather. The ocean drives climate and weather. It absorbs around 90% of excess heat trapped by C02. #ClimateChange makes it more vulnerable and hazardous. #OceanDecade Resources at bit.ly/2OTifKU Retweeted by DIAS Geophysics
Blue regions are at the lower limit and show quiescent periods. Red regions are at the high limit and signify active periods. #DIASdiscovers #WorldMetDay
Links can be seen between wave height and seismic amplitudes. Below are wave heights from Met Eireann's M6 buoy, seismic displacement from a seismometer in western Donegal (12km from the coast) and a spectrogram of the seismic data from April 2012. #WorldMetDay #OceanScience
We are collaborators with @MetEireann and @DIASAstronomy in 'Space Weather' research and we are recording natural magnetic and electric field variations in County Kerry to assist this exciting research. #DIASdiscovers #worldmetday