The two giant heat engines responsible for plate tectonics and the geodynamo dynamically interact at the core-mantle boundary of the Earth's interior. A multidisciplinary approach is required to determine the composition, structure, and dynamics of the interface. This volume describes original and fundamental research in seismology, geodynamics, mineral physics, and geomagnetism.

The first comprehensive review of past and contemporary research on the Earth's inner core from a seismological perspective. Providing a detailed account of how seismology is used in inner core research, and suggesting avenues for further study, it is an essential resource for researchers and students studying seismology and deep Earth processes.

A multidisciplinary perspective on the dynamic processes occurring in Earth's mantle The convective motion of material in Earth's mantle, powered by heat from the deep interior of our planet, drives plate tectonics at the surface, generating earthquakes and volcanic activity. It shapes our familiar surface landscapes, and also stabilizes the oceans and atmosphere on geologic timescales. Mantle Convection and Surface Expressions brings together perspectives from observational geophysics, numerical modelling, geochemistry, and mineral physics to build a holistic picture of the deep Earth. It explores the dynamic processes occurring in the mantle as well as the associated heat and material cycles. Volume highlights include: Perspectives from different scientific disciplines with an emphasis on exploring synergies Current state of the mantle, its physical properties, compositional structure, and dynamic evolution Transport of heat and material through the mantle as constrained by geophysical observations, geochemical data and geodynamic model predictions Surface expressions of mantle dynamics and its control on planetary evolution and habitability The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. Its publications disseminate scientific knowledge and provide resources for researchers, students, and professionals.

This book presents investigations on the Earth's seismic structure using both active-source and natural earthquake records. It discusses the ground-truth data obtained from the TAiwan Integrated GEodynamics Research (TAIGER) active-source experiments that provides excellent and unique insights into the shallow crustal structures beneath Taiwan. It also explores the full-wave sensitivity kernels, which account for the effects of all possible wave interferences involved in shear-wave splitting and therefore loosen the restrictions on source-receiver geometry amenable to shear-wave splitting analysis. Moreover, it describes the 3D Fréchet kernels, which enable us to resolve the vertical and lateral variations in seismic anisotropy and obtain 3D images of the Earth's anisotropic structure, as well as the practice in Southern California that enables us to infer the state of the stress and strain in the lithosphere and the dynamics of the asthenospheric mantle flow for a better understanding of the strength and deformation in the upper mantle beneath the San Andreas Fault system.

Plate tectonics has significantly broadened our view of the dynamics of continental evolution, involving both the processes currently active at the surface and those extending deep into the interior of the Earth. Seismic anisotropy provides some of the most diagnostic evidence for mapping past and present deformation of the entire crustmantle system. This volume contains papers presented originally at an international workshop at the Chateau of Trest in the Czech Republic in 1996. This workshop brought together geophysicists and geologists who work in the field of observational and theoretical seismology, mineral and rock physics, gravity studies and geodynamic modelling. Topics include large-scale anisotropy of the Earth's mantle, mantle heterogeneity vs. anisotropy 3-D velocity and density structures and inferences on mantle dynamics, mineral and rock physics studies, and mathematical aspects of complex wave propagation.

Reprint from Pure and Applied Geophysics (PAGEOPH), Volume 151 (1998), No. 2/3/4

(Cont.) To characterize further the detailed pattern of flow and anisotropy, I evaluate a series of two-dimensional finite element models that describe the subduction of the Philippine Sea plate beneath southwestern Japan, and compare the resulting flow field, strain, and anisotropy in the mantle wedge to F-net shear wave splitting observations. To complement this forward modeling approach, I develop and implement a method for the 2.5-D inversion of shear wave splitting intensity measurements for anisotropic structure in the upper mantle. I present preliminary anisotropic models for southwestern Japan and discuss strategies for explicitly integrating the tomographic inversion of splitting intensity data with numerical models that describe geodynamic processes in the wedge. Finally, I describe a series of laboratory experiments characterizing deformation and the resulting lattice preferred orientation in magnesiowüstite, a lower mantle mineral, and discuss the implications for the interpretation of seismic anisotropy at the base of the mantle.