9313596 Frey This three-year award supports U.S.-Belgium cooperative research between Frederick A. Frey of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Dominique Weis of the Universite Libre de Bruxelles. Both groups will perform complementary geochemical analyses of lavas erupted from the Kerguelen volcanic plume over the last 40 million years. The resulting Kerguelen Archipelago is considered a mantle "hotspot." The award provides travel support to Dr. Frey's graduate student for analysis and interpretation of the complementary data sets. The graduate student will benefit from the expertise of U.S. and Belgium mentors and have access to specialized equipment. Dr. Frey brings to this collaboration expertise for trace element analysis using neutron activation. This is complemented by Dr. Weis' expertise in isotopic analysis using mass spectrometry. Studies of lavas and volcanism over a period of time have been very useful in understanding mantle hotspots. Frey and Weis propose to apply this approach to the Kerguelen Archipelago's lavas. Their study will advance our understanding of mantle hotspots and more specifically, of the Kerguelen hotspot's influence in creating the eastern Indian Ocean seafloor. ***
