What is it?
Geosciences
Geosciences is an umbrealla for all the sciences thast study the planet Earth's structure, evolution, and dynamics, as well as those of Earth's natural mineral and energy resources. Geosciences includes geology (the study of the Earth's history as recored in rocks), geophysics (geology that uses physical principals to study the Earth's properties), and geochemistry (the chemistry of the Earth's crust). Geosciences uses the record of history that is in rock to investigate how the Earth has been shaped throughout its 4,600 million years. Geoscience is founded on plate tectonic theory. This theory is that the Earth's lithosphere, or outer part, is made up of several interlocking, moving plates. The movement of these plates are either directly or indirectly involved in processes like earthquakes, mountain building, and volcanic activity9.
Mining Engineering
Mining engineering is an engineering discipline that involves the practice, the theory, the science, the technology, and application of extracting and processing minerals from a naturally occurring environment. Mining engineering also includes processing minerals for additional value 10.
DUSEL Focus
Rock Mechanics
Rock mechanics is an applied science within Mining Engineering. Its body of knowledge is made up of the following:
- mechanical properties of rock;
- methods of analyzing rock stress under some administered stress;
- established principles conveying the response of rock mass to load; and
- a logical process of applying these principles and methods to problems in the field.
Construction at the surface and subsurface, mineral recovery, geothermal energy recovery, and the isolation of subsurface hazardous waves are a few of the areas in which the application of the concepts in rock mechanics have exhibited their value to the industry1.
Seismology
Seismology is the study of shockwaves that are made by disturbances, such as earthquakes, that spread throughout planets and the like. Seismographs measure the strength of these waves, as well as other characteristics. These measurements give scientists information about a planet’s internal structure. For example, these shockwaves can yield information about how a planet’s crust, mantle, and core are divided.6
Fracture Study
Fracture study looks at local separations or planes of discontinuity in geological formations. These can be things like joints or faults that split a rock into more than one piece. A common cause of fractures is stress on the strength of the rock. This stress can be natural or man-made. Rocks with many fractures are good aquifers and reservoirs for hydrocarbons, because fractures aid these fluids in moving through rock 3.
Geophysics
Coming soon!
Hydrology
Coming soon!
Mineral Studies
Coming soon!
Geomodeling
Coming soon!
Research Questions
for Geosciences
- What are the interactions among the subsurface process?
- Can we reliably predict and control earthquakes?
- Are underground resources of drinking water safe and secure?
- Can we make the earth "transparent" and observe underground processess in action?
for Mining Engineering
- What are the mechanical properties of rock?
- How can technology lead to a safer underground?
- How does rock respond to human activity?
- How does water flow deep underground?
- What lies beneath the boreholes?
Experiments at DUSEL
DUGL
The Deep Underground Gravity Lab (DUGL), is part of DUSEL. The DUSEL site is attractive for this sub-lab due to the reduction of seismic noise, stable gravitational field, and stable environment that are a result of DUSEL’s depth. The DUGL has two goals:
Understand the structure of the seismic noise underground.
Estimate how large seismic array would be needed for active suppression of gravity gradient noise 7.
Each seismic station consists of a hut made of panels of rigid-foam. Inside this hut are the sensors, which need to be shielded from water and sound. The hut for the sensors also has an additional container that acts as a shield for the high-sensitivity seismometer, which must be guarded against sound and air currents. Beside the seismometer are sensors specialized to measure sound, temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, and the strength and direction of magnetic fields. A second hut contains a computer and power supply 5.
All of the seismic stations are remotely controlled from the DUGL, which is located inside the “Ross dry”2. Data from the seismic stations is sent to the lab on a regular basis via fiber link7. Approximately 2 GB of data is produced by each station every day. This data is eventually copied and sent to facilities at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) to be stored and analyzed. Eventually, DUGL scientists would like to be able to access their laboratory computer system remotely, so that they and their colleagues can use the data no matter where they are. Each seismic station has a clock which is synchronized at the microsecond level. This creates an artificial antenna to measure vibrations in the rock2.
LIGO
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), shares a base with the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The goal of this experiment is to detect gravitational waves and subsequently control them in order to conduct further research. Eventually, LIGO scientists want to be able to use lasers that are a mile long to probe Homestake mine’s drifts and shafts in search of changes in the earth caused by gravitational waves8.
Gravitational waves are changes in the curvature of spacetime. A gravitational wave, in a general sense, a force field that moves at the speed of light and alters how far apart different masses are. In order to “see” gravitational waves, scientists must detect the changes in these distances. At DUSEL, LIGO has constructed antennas that measure the distance between suspended mirrors using laser light48.
Ground vibrations, vibrations of the mirror’s surfaced caused by heat, variations in the laser light, and Newtonian noise. Of all of these, Newtonian noise is thought of as the most challenging when all is said and done. The team at Homestake's goal is to develop an improved understanding of Newtonian noise and from that develop techniques which lessen its negative effects when trying to detect gravitational waves4.
Because gravitational waves are so hard to measure, the LIGO team aims for the processes that are the most energetic in the universe. These include supernovae, the paths of neutron stars or binary black holes as they lose energy, and the Big Bang; however, even when scientists use such big engines as the producers of the gravitational waves they are detecting, the amount of movement that happens to the mirrors within one of the antennae is extremely small. Jan Harms, Angelo Sajeva, Riccardo Desalvo, and Vuk Mandic write of their efforts that “once we measure these waves, antennas around the world will open up a completely new window to our universe. This time we would not look out of the window, but hold our ears to the glass pane and listen to the death of stars and the birth of our observable universe”4.
Hydrology
Homestake Hydrostatic Water Level System
Coming soon!
Who's Doing It?
- Dr. Bill Roggenthen
- Dr. Steven Glaser
- Dr. Larry Stetler
- Dr. James Volk
Further Reading
Check out the Geosciences and Mining Engingeering sections of the bibliography.
Media
External Links
Stetler, Larry and Bill Harlan. "Hydrostatic sensors detect 'earth tides'." Feb 4 2009.
