| Details: |
In the present-day Earth, melting occur in various tectonic settings that include divergent boundarymid-
ocean ridges, convergent boundary-subduction zones, and intraplate i.e., ocean island
magmatism. However, melting is not confined to shallow tectonic settings, geophysical evidence of
lower shear wave velocities and enhanced electrical conductivity suggests melting in the Earth’s deep
interior including above and below the mantle transition zone, the core-mantle boundary, and the
Earth’s outer core.
The Earth’s early history was dominated by violent collisions between proto-planetary bodies
which likely resulted in large-scale melting of the silicate mantle, often referred to as the “Magma
Ocean”. Transport properties (viscosity) of melts in the “Magma Ocean” have likely played a vital role in
influencing convection regimes and eventual crystallization. In all these tectonic settings, deep and/or
early Earth conditions, it is important to have better constraints on the atomistic scale structure of the
melt and how it influences elastic and transport properties which ultimately dictates the dynamics of
melt migration. |