Courtesy of Emily Hopper
Courtesy of Emily Hopper
Courtesy of Emily Hopper From her lab in New York City, geologist Emily Hopper is studying a mystery of the American West.
For hundreds of million of years not much happened geologically to the Colorado Plateau—other than it mysteriously popping up from sea level to its current elevation of more than 5,000 feet. Nobody knows how (or even exactly when) this happened. Hopper studies plate tectonics, using seismic waves to get a snapshot of the deeper parts of the plate and find out what occurred.
We can’t drill deeper than a few miles, so seismology is one of the few ways we can get any information about what is happening in the Earth. “Listening” tells us a lot about conditions deeper in the planet—what the rocks are made of, how hot they are, how wet they are, if there is some magma there. Knowing more about these conditions helps scientists like Hopper understand what is happening to the plate—and how and why this affects events like volcanoes and earthquakes.
SciChats are FREE and open to all 10- to 13-year-olds accompanied by a guardian. This is a chance to socialize, eat snacks, and hang out with scientists and other curious kids.
Event Details
RSVP by March 7. Entrance directions will be included in your reminder email prior to this event.
Questions? Please email [email protected].
Support for middle-school programs is provided by Con Edison.