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Susan E. Humprhis
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Education:
- 1977
- PhD, MIT/WHOI Joint Program, Chemical Oceanography
- 1972
- BA (1st Class Hon.), University of Lancaster, U.K., Environmental Sciences
Experience:
- 2004-present
- Chair, Geology & Geophysics Department
- 2000-04
- Director, Deep Ocean Exploration Institute, WHOI
- 1998-presen
- Senior Scientist, WHOI
- 1992-98
- Research Specialist, WHOI
- 1986-92
- Dean, Sea Education Association
- 1979-86
- Scientist, Sea Education Association
- 1976-78
- Postdoctoral Researcher, Imperial College, London, UK
Publications and Awards
Over 80 publications in various scientific journals including Science, Nature, Journal of Geophysical Research, Geology, Geochimica Cosmochimica Acta, Earth & Planetary Science Letters, and Chemical Geology. Co-creator of the award-winning Dive and Discover website
Selected Publications:
- Humphris, S.E., Herzig, P., Miller, D.J., and the Leg 158 Shipboard Scientific Party, 1995. The subsurface nature of an active seafloor hydrothermal system, 26°N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Nature, 377, 713-716.
- Humphris, S.E. and Cann, J.R., 2000. Constraints on the energy and chemical balances of the modern TAG and ancient Cyprus seafloor sulfide deposits. J. Geophys. Res., 105, 28,477-28,488.
- Humphris, S.E. and Tivey, M.K., 2000. A synthesis of geological and geochemical investigations of the TAG hydrothermal fluid: Insights into fluid flow and mixing processes in a hydrothermal system. In: Dilek, Y., Moores, E., Elthon, D. and Nicolas, A. (eds): Ophiolites and Oceanic Crust: New Insights from Field Studies and the Ocean Drilling Program.: Boulder, CO, Geological Society of America Special Paper 349, p. 213-235.
- Humphris, S.E., Fornari, D.J., Scheirer, D.S., German, C.R. and Parson, L.M., 2002. Geotectonic setting of hydrothermal activity on the summit of Lucky Strike Seamount (37°17’N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge). G-cubed, 3(8), 1049, doi: 10.1029/2001GC000284
- Humphris, S.E., Halbach, M. and Juniper, K., 2003. Low-temperature alteration: Fluxes and mineralization. In: Halbach, P.E., Tunnicliffe, V. and Hein, J.R. (eds.) Energy and Mass Transfer in Hydrothermal Systems, Dahlem University Press, Germany, 163-181.
- Humphris, S.E. and Bach, W., 2005. On the Sr isotope and REE composition of anhydrites in the TAG seafloor hydrothermal system. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 69, 1511-1525.
- DeMartin, B., Reves-Sohn, R., Canales, J.P. and Humphris, S.E., 2007. Kinematics and geometry of detachment faulting beneath the TAG hydrothermal field, Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Geology, 35, 711-714.
- Humphris, S.E., Reves-Sohn, R.A., Singh, T. and Edmonds, H.N., 2008. Exploration of hydrothermal vents on the Gakkel Ridge, Arctic Ocean, using autonomous underwater vehicles. In: Collins, K. and Griffiths, G. (eds): Proc. of International Workshop on AUV Science in Extreme Environments. London: Society for Underwater Technology, pp. 129-136.
- 1991
- Massachusetts Marine Educators Award for Dedicated Service and Outstanding
Contributions to Marine Education
- 1992
- Ocean Drilling Program Distinguished Lecturer
- 1999
- J. Seward Johnson Chair in Oceanography, WHOI
- 2003
- Massachusetts Marine Educators’ Nap J. Bonaparte Service Award
Professional Memberships:
- American Geophysical Union
- American Association for the Advancement of Science
Interests:
Susan Humphris studies hydrothermal activity along the gobal mid-ocean ridge system. Her ultimate objective is to assess the role of hydrothermal fluxes in global geochemical mass balances. This involves combining two lines of research: (i) investigating the volcanic and tectonic controls on the distribution and characteristics of hydrothermal activity at ridges of different spreading rates, and (ii) unraveling the geochemistry of seawater-rock reactions within hydrothermal systems.
These interests have resulted in Susan spending more than three years at sea on various oceanographic research ships, including the drilling ships Glomar Challenger and JOIDES Resolution. She has completed many dives in the submersible, Alvin, and has used the remotely-operated vehicle Jason and autonomous underwater vehicles for scientific work in the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian and Arctic Oceans.
Susan was also the co-creator of the award-winning Dive and Discover website to bring oceanographic research expeditions in near real-time to students and the general public. The backbone of the site is a series of educational modules that address basic science concepts central to marine science and research being conducted at sea. When a cruise is taking place, the site provides daily updates on the progress of the cruise through still and video images from the seafloor and of shipboard operations, graphical representations of a wide variety of oceanographic data, explanations about the technology being used, and general information about life at sea and the scientists, engineers, and mariners that make oceanographic research possible