Prof. Peter A. Cawood
Understanding the Earth’s continental crust- its formation, preservation and recycling - has been the long term research interest of Peter. His work spans from Archean cratons to modern, active margins, and at scales ranging from global to microscopic, covering the range of tectonic processes involved in crust formation. He focuses on developing regional data sets and integrates them with global compilations to unravel spatial and temporal variations in the drivers involved in crust formation. He has been also working on understanding the dynamics and timing of initiation of plate tectonics, driving mechanisms of orogenesis and paleogeographic reconstructions. He research has been pivotal in : i) defining Earth’s early supercontinents (Nuna and Rodinia), and thus establishing that they are a cyclical feature of Earth history; ii) understanding processes of crustal generation, reworking and recycling at the major mountain belts of the world; and iii) in the application of the methodologies for microanalysis of sedimentary rocks as a key to understanding the composition of the crust.
He is currently the ARC Laureate Fellow at Monash University. Previously, he has held academic positions at University of St Andrews in Scotland, University of Western Australia, Curtin University, and Memorial University in Canada. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2013 and the Australian Academy of Science in 2018, and was awarded the Mawson Medal from the Australian Academy of Science in 2008, and the Carey Medal from the Geological Society of Australia in 2002. He has been Director of the ARC Tectonics Special Research Centre and the John de Laeter Centre of Mass Spectrometry. From 2008 to 2010 he was President of the Geological Society of Australia.
Dr. Jack Mulder
Jack uses the sedimentary record to understand crustal evolution. He integrates field-based studies with single-mineral geochronology, geochemistry, and isotope analysis to refine the age, provenance, and tectonic setting of sedimentary basins. His current research work explores how faithfully sedimentary systems, both modern and ancient, record the composition of crust in their source regions and how the detrital record of sedimentary rocks has been influence by plate tectonic processes through time. He is also interested in Proterozoic tectonics and supercontinent reconstructions and has ongoing research projects in Australia, East Antarctica, and the western United States.
Dr. Priyadarshi Chowdhury
Priyadarshi focuses on the application of metamorphic petrology, diffusion chronometry (geospeedometry) and geodynamic modeling to understand the evolution of plate tectonics and its record within the preserved continental archive. His current research interests include deciphering the early styles of plate tectonics, understanding the continental recycling processes and rates during the Precambrian and quantification of the thermal evolution of Precambrian high grade (granulite) terranes.
Dr. Melanie Finch
Melanie is currently working on understanding the systematics of hafnium in magmatic rocks and on using geochemistry to understand cyclicity in magmatic arcs.
Dr. Alex McCoy West
Alex’s research focuses on using a wide range of geochemical tools, including radiogenic and novel stable isotope systems, to understand the processes involved in the formation, differentiation and evolution of our planet and its major geochemical reservoirs. Currently, he is keen on using novel stable isotopes to place better constraints on the mechanisms involved in the formation of the earliest continental crust.
