Ocean floor is topic of latest Geology Lecture Series talk

Dr. Donna Blackman from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography is the next scheduled speaker for the Geology Lecture Series at Southwestern Oregon Community College.

Blackman’s talk, “Discoveries and Seafloor Drilling Surprises: An Undersea Mountain Provides Clues on the Formation of Oceanic Crust,” is planned for 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 7, at the Hales Center for the Performing Arts on the Southwestern campus in Coos Bay. It is free and open to the public.

The focus of her talk involves research in association with the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program. One topic will involve the discovery of the “Lost City” hydrothermal vent field on the mid-Atlantic Ridge. The hydrothermal vents in this field tower 180 feet above the sea floor with a unique composition of carbonate minerals, compared to the iron and sulfur-based minerals that are commonly associated with hydrothermal vents. This discovery shows that there still is much to learn on the ocean floor and, as research continues, new surprises will enhance our knowledge of the deep.

Blackman comes to Coos Bay as part of the Joint Oceanographic Institutions Distinguished Lecture Series. She earned a bachelor’s degree in earth science from the University of California, Santa Cruz; a master’s degree in marine geophysics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; and a doctorate in marine geophysics from Brown University. Her research has been published in many leading scientific journals including Nature and Science.

The Geology Lecture Series is sponsored by Methane Energy Corporation and Southwestern. For more information, those interested can contact Ron Metzger at 888-7216 or rmetzger@socc.edu.

Press Release Date: March 22 , 2007