Available PhD Topics

Earth Sciences

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Planetary Geology: An Introduction

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UCL Earth Sciences
Gower Street
London WC1E 6BT

+44 (0)20 7679 2363

earthsci@ucl.ac.uk

Available PhD Topics

Overview | Structure | Topics | How to Apply | Contact

Available Topics | Current Topics

Funded project open for applications:

Topic

Supervisor

Co-supervisor

CASE Partner / Supervisor

The Potential of New Technologies to Assist in Managing and Recovering from Disasters and Major Incidents. Project details

David Alexander

Rosanna Smith

Joanna Faure Walker

IRDR

Application deadline for the IRDR Impact studentship is the 15th April 2013

The recruitment process will start in February, you are therefore advised to submit your application by the 30^th January 2013.

Please read the Important Notes before applying.

Dynamics and Evolution of the Earth and Planets

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor	CASE Partner / Supervisor
Impact melting and vaporization of planets including the proto-Earth. *	Lars Stixrude	Carolina Lithgow-Bertelloni	MoltenEarth ERC Grant
Material behaviour governing the evolution of the magma ocean. *	Lars Stixrude	Carolina Lithgow-Bertelloni	MoltenEarth ERC Grant
Planetary Cores: the role of metal alloys in terrestrial planets.	Lidunka Vocadlo	Ian Wood David Dobson
Diffusion in mantle minerals and how the Earth convects.	John Brodholt	David Dobson
Transport properties in Post-Perovskite: implications for super-Earths.	David Dobson	Ian Wood
Is Earth’s topography controlled by mantle thermodynamics?	Carolina Lithgow-Bertelloni	Lars Stixrude
Carbon-bearing fluids in the Earths mantle.	John Brodholt	Lidunka Vocadlo David Dobson
Melting curve of iron alloys in super-Earths.	Lidunka Vocadlo	Lars Stixrude

Dynamics and Evolution of the Crust

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor
Temporal and spatial strain accumulation within the Italian Apennines from modelling and laboratory experiments.	Peter Sammonds	Joanna Faure Walker Gerald Roberts
High temperature pressurization, fracturing and permeability in volcanic systems.	Peter Sammonds	Philip Meredith Hugh Tuffen
The link between earthquake recurrence and structural geology: the role of slip-rates, elapsed time and stress transfer.	Gerald Roberts	Peter Sammonds
Explaining Neogene surface uplift in northern Vietnam.	Andy Carter	Pieter Vermeesch

Environmental Geochemistry

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor
The Role of Soil Minerals in Stabilising Soil Organic Carbon.	Karen Hudson-Edwards	Graham Shields
A disruptive new technology for in-situ U-Th-He geochronology.	Pieter Vermeesch	Andy Carter James Schwanethal (UCL)

Natural Hazards

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor
Forecasting unrest and eruption at large volcanic calderas.	Christopher Kilburn	Stephen Edwards

Paleoclimate, Paleobiology, and Paleoenvironments

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor	CASE Partner / Supervisor
The Early Evolution of Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs and the Origins of Quadrupedality in the Largest Land Animals.	Paul Upchurch	Anjali Goswami
Sedimentation & Tectonics of the Andaman deep-marine deposits, Andaman Islands, India.	Kevin Pickering	Andy Carter
Reconstructing early Cretaceous continental climates.	Stuart Robinson	Tim Atkinson
Nutrient Feedbacks during early Earth history.	Graham Shields	Juergen Thurow
Geochemical signals in greenhouse and icehouse planktonic foraminifera.	Bridget Wade	David Thornalley John McArthur	CASE award with NERC Isotope Geosciences Laboratory/BGS
Walking the cat back: Evolutionary mechanics and modularity of felid locomotion.	Anjali Goswami		Susan Evans (UCL-CDB)

Polar Modelling and Climate Change

Topic

Supervisor

Co-supervisor

Fracture Mechanics of Ice Shelves.

Peter Sammonds

Joanna Faure Walker

Daniel Feltham (Reading University)

Planetary Studies - Mars

Topic	Supervisor	Co-supervisor
Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction on Mars.	Peter Grindrod	Matt Balme (OU) S. Gupta(Imperial) Adrian Jones
Characterising the Stratigraphy of Future Landing Sites on Mars.	Peter Grindrod	Jan-Peter Muller (MSSL)
The survival of terrestrial microorganisms within spacecraft components under simulated martian conditions: implications for planetary protection.	Ian Crawford	John Ward (UCL) Manish Patel (Open University)

UCL Earth Sciences · Gower Street London WC1E 6BT · +44 (0)20 7679 2363
earthsci@ucl.ac.uk · more