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David E. Loper
Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Institute
Florida State University
Tallahassee, Florida
IAGA
“My first reaction on a sober
Friday morning is
‘Did I really agree to give a
talk on that?!’ ”
2
CB to DL:
05Apr04
IAGA
3
This talk will NOT cover
• Correlations of
Gallet &
> magnetic field reversals Courtillot
1995
> impacts
> and mass extinctions
Raup &
Sepkoski 1984
4
This talk will NOT cover
• Biological effects of magnetic fields
> correlations of field strength and
• skull thickness (Ivanhoe, 1979)
• cancer (Archer, 1978)
> bio-navigation
> the lesser electric ray that
puts magnetite grains in its
ears (Rudloe)
5
Geomagnetism & anthropology
An interesting book:
The Search for the Great Turtle Mother
by Jack Rudloe
6
This talk will NOT cover
• Environmental magnetism
• Medical magnetism
> Magnets placed in shoes, etc.
7
Consider the big picture
Gaia Magoo?
or
JPL
• Some oxygen
> from photosynthesis
• Stable climate
> plate tectonics
• Lots of time
> ~3 Gyr
14
Ingredients for intelligence,
civilization and technology
• Dry land (continental crust)
> mineral deposits
> hydrocarbon deposits
• Oxygen-rich atmosphere
• Very stable climate
• Suitable plants & animals
> Guns, Germs & Steel;
J. Diamond Patte Loper
17
The key component
“… we take the primary requirement for
habitability to be the presence of liquid
water on a planet’s surface.” Kasting 1997
liquid water
life on Earth
Wes Skiles 18
The hidden component
life on Earth
19
Water loss
Energetic atoms
H* + O* can escape;
ions can be
+ H++ O+ swept away
a variety of
processes
vapor in the
atmosphere
ask
Google
define:
aeronomy
21
Loss of ions –
internal mechanisms
• polar wind
> strong planetary
(dipolar) field
> flux is not large
22
Loss of ions –
external mechanisms.1
• Involves several magnetic fields
> solar / interplanetary field
> planetary field
SOHO
> induced field
> crustal field
Rohman
23
Loss of ions –
external mechanisms.2
• non thermal escape Similar to
> photoionization sandblasting
> dissociative recombination
> charge exchange
> pickup-ion sputtering
• generally not
important
24
Loss of neutrals –
internal mechanisms
Maxwell-
• Jeans escape – Boltzman
distribution
> hot atoms boiling off
> not important
• hydrodynamic escape –
> like a supersonic nozzle
> important early in the evolution outer space
of atmospheres of all terrestrial Supersonic nozzle
planets
planet surface
25
Loss of neutrals –
external mechanisms.1
• impact blowoff
> Important on early Mars
> not important on Earth or Venus
• due to larger escape velocity
• Photodissociation
> important early for Venus
USGS
• during solar T Tauri phase
26
Loss of neutrals –
external mechanisms.2
• Solar wind scouring Lund Observatory
consists of
energetic
protons
(H+) and
electrons
is variable,
originating
in flares
drags the
solar
magnetic
field NASA
28
Solar wind at Mars
Mars has no
large-scale
magnetic field
Solar wind
comes close to
the surface of
Mars, scouring
away its
atmosphere
29
NASA
Solar wind at Venus
Chassefière 1997:
Venus could
have lost an
ocean of water IGPP.UCLA
in ~10 Myr.
30
Solar wind at Earth
Earth has a
large-scale
magnetic
field
Solar wind is
deflected away
from Earth,
protecting the
atmosphere
Jim Kaler
31
Aside: Evolution of Planetary
Atmospheres: Venus, Mars & Earth
• Earth: Moon-forming
impact
32
GJ Taylor
Venus’ atmosphere
formation & now
early loss timeline
in the HOT!
CO2 atmosphere
Lots of water
vapor initially.
Key factor: no
condensation
Cambridge Atlas 33
of Astronomy
Mars’ atmosphere
formation & now
early loss timeline
in the condense
H2O atmosphere
sequestered in the crust
ocean by plate tectonics
not much
water to
begin with COLD!
in the
CO2 atmosphere sequestered
magnetic field
and plate
tectonics 34
NASA
Earth’s atmosphere
formation & now
early loss timeline
in the condense
H2O atmosphere in the ocean
CO2 in the
atmosphere early sequestered in the crust
greenhouse
O2 photosynthesis
in the atmosphere
volcanic
N2 in the mantle
degassing in the atmosphere
life on Earth
39
Why is Earth a magnet?
Ohmic dissipation
dominates viscous
diffusion
A visualization of the
dynamo operating in
the core G. Glatzmaier
40
Dynamo dynamics
41
Earth
structure
Outer core is
well mixed by
convection
Adiabatic
temperature
increases
with depth
42
Nimmo and Alfè
Core energetics
Conduction Convection
43
Heat conduction
thermal conductivity
dT dT K
Qcond = -kA dr
≈ 8 × 10-4
m
dr
20th century: A ≈ 1.5 × 1014 m2
W
If k = 28 , then Qcond ≈ 3.4 × 1012 W Qsurf ≈ 45 × 1012 W
mK
W k is causing
If k = 56 , then Qcond ≈ 6.8 × 1012 W trouble
mK
44
Too much conductivity?
thermal conductivity
Wiedemann-Franz Law: k = LT σ
electrical
conductivity
Too much of
a good thing!
45
Core heat sources
Q = QP + QR + QL + Qg + ...
Primordial heat Gravitational
(compositional)
Radioactivity
Latent heat
46
Dynamo energy sources
Need: 11
Qdynamo > several × 10 W
47
Unresolved issues
• Dynamo power
> amount required vs amount available
• Amount of heat conducted down the adiabat
> Stacey’s recent estimate of k
• Thermal vs. compositional convection
> role of precession
• Age of the inner core
• Amount of radioactivity in the core
> reasonable thermal history
• Mode of core motion
> overturning or box-filling 48
The third component
life on Earth
49
Planetary cooling
T = potential temperature
dT Energy
=r −q balance
t = time
dt q = surface heat flux
r = radioactive heating
dr Radioactive heating
<0 decreases with time
dt
(
q = f T, mode of convection )
∂q Hot planets
>0
∂T cool faster
50
Mantle modes
(
q = f T, water ) Magma
q ocean all young
Earth Plate planets
tectonics
Water
Dynamo (
q = f T, no water )
No dynamo No water
Sluggish lid cooling
r Venus warming
Rigid lid
Conduction Mars
Moon
No melt Some melt Lots of melt
T 51
Large heat flux
52
Effects of plate tectonics
• Rapid mantle circulation
> sequestration of carbon &
stabilization of climate
• Formation of continental crust
> volcanoes and mountains
• Concentration of minerals
> via volcanism and hydrothermal circulation
• Geophysical hazards
> earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis !
53
The fourth component
water
provides
lubrication
55
The water cycle
• Water is
> added to oceanic crust by hydrothermal
circulation at mid-ocean ridges (serpentine)
> conveyed to subduction zones
by plate motion
> released at depth by breakdown
of hydrated minerals
> the lubricant permitting the subducting
plate to slide beneath the surface plate
56
Closing the loop
heat flux is a
process, not plate tectonics
a feature
protection from
cosmic rays life on Earth
58
What can go wrong
in the future?
59
Fate of water
• Water can be Mars
> lost to outer space
• after failure of dynamo?
> sequestered in the mantle
abmedia
• Oceans can freeze
> large spin-axis eccentricity
• ice at the equator
> failure of the carbonate-silicate cycle
> inauspicious continental configuration?
• Oceans can boil Venus and
> increasing solar Mercury
luminosity 60
H Kaiser
Failure of the dynamo
61
Failure of plate tectonics.1
• Lack of melting at mid-ocean ridge?
> Australian- Gurnis and
Müller 2003
Antarctic
discordance
62
Evidence of PT failure in
stress near AAD?
No clear
stress
pattern
63
Failure of plate tectonics.2
• Lack of water at mid-ocean ridge Mars
> Iceland, Afar Face of the Earth
66
Other future problems.2
Hubble
67
Other future problems.3
• Massive volcanic eruption
> Toba nearly exterminated “Genetic evidence suggests that
Homo Sapiens Human population size fell to
about 10,000 adults between 50
~73,000 years ago and 100 thousand years ago.”
Ambrose 1998
68
Problems avoided.1
71
Problems avoided.4
• Sun too big It takes a long
> lifetime too short for time (~ 4 Gyr)
complex life to develop for complex
life to develop
• Sun too small
> planets too close; tidal locking
72
Habitable zone
Darwin
73
Evolution of the Sun
hot cool
bright bright
hot cool
dim dim
Faulkes
74
Galactic
habitable
zone increasing
age of
galaxy
Poor in heavy
elements
Too crowded
OK
“… we are living in
a short window of
opportunity in the
history of the
universe …”
Gonzales 1998
75
Problems avoided.5
• Sun too close to neighbors
> too much radiation
> too many close encounters
with wandering stars
• Sun has a companion star
> no stable planetary orbits
77
Summary.2
78
Summary.3
79