How did Large Igneous Provinces change global climate so rapidly?

Part of the Lapworth Lecture series

Speakers: Dr Steve Jones, University of Birmingham, and Dr Manfredo Capriolo, University of Birmingham

Monday 14th October at 5:30pm

How did Large Igneous Provinces change global climate so rapidly?

Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) are huge outpourings of lava that occur episodically throughout Earth's history. LIPs are associated with environmental catastrophes including global warming, ocean acidification and mass extinction events. Yet although this correlation is well known, the causal chain of processes that links LIPs to environmental catastrophes has not yet been fully worked out. We have increasingly good evidence that the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide and methane were emitted along with the LIP lava eruptions, but a deeper problem remains: how the magma and associated greenhouse gases formed in the first place. The environmental catastrophes occurred over millennia to tens of millennia, and we do not yet know how enough magma and gas emissions could be generated so rapidly. At the University of Birmingham, we are testing whether the "pulsing mantle plume" hypothesis provides the answer.

In this talk, we will present our latest results from fieldwork on land and at sea during summer 2024. If we can firmly establish the physical processes that explain how LIP greenhouse gas emissions drove environmental catastrophes on a millennial timeframe, it may become feasible to use these past natural emissions experiments to learn more about potentially dangerous tipping points within our climate system.  

All are welcome to attend and there is no admission charge.

Register to watch remotely via Zoom.

The Lecture will be held in Aston Webb A Block, Lecture Theatre WG12.

This Lecture is in collaboration with the Volcanic and Magmatic Studies Group (VMSG) as part of their 60th anniversary seminar series being held across the UK. For more information visit the VMSG's website.