V. RAMA MURTHY
I.T. Distinguished Professor
PhD, 1957, Yale University
Office: 204B Pillsbury Hall
Phone: (612) 625-6836
Fax: (612) 625-3819
Email: vrmurthy@...
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Research Interests
My research interests
for many years have focused on the application of radiogenic
isotope systematics (U-Pb, Sm-Nd, Rb-Sr), the isotopic abundances
of certain rare-earth elements and the trace-element systematics
to a variety of geological and planetary science problems. These
include the general geochemistry of the mantle and the origin
of basalts in both oceanic and continental regions, mantle metasomatism,
ultramafic rocks, the composition of the earth's core, and the
age and the isotopic and trace-element characteristics of meteorites
and lunar basalts and soils.
More recently, I
have been interested in the earliest history of the Earth during
accretion and early differentiation. In the past few years I
have worked on the core formation process in the Earth and the
chemical signature such a process would have left on the mantle.
Current models of planetary accretions suggest that the Earth
would have been largely molten at the end of its accretion,
with a global magma ocean in the earliest history of the planet.
Because of the size of the planet, this magma ocean would be
a domain of very high temperature and pressure in which metal-silicate
differentiation occurs. The clues for this differentiation are
provided by the siderophile elements that have been partitioned
into the silicates at high temperatures. I have been investigating
this partitioning behavior in an effort to reconcile the observed
siderophile chemistry of the mantle with a a high
temperature process and the physical and chemical conditions
of equilibrium that prevailed during this core-mantle separation
in the earth.
Honors and Awards
- 2005 Visiting Research Professor, Institute of Meteoritics, University of New Mexico
- 2002 Visiting Scientist, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington
- 2002 President’s Distinguished Faculty Mentor, University of Minnesota
- 2001 President’s Outstanding Service Award, University of Minnesota
- 1996- Institute
of Technology Distinguished Professorship
- 1996-97 President, University of Minnesota
Twin Cities Chapter of AAUP
- 1994-98 Mr. and Mrs. George Taylor Distingusihed
Professor
- 1990 Outstanding
Service Award, Regents of the University of Minnesota.
- 1984- Fellow of
the American Geophysical Union
- 1988 Achievement
Award in Education, National Federation of Asian Indian Organizations
Recent Courses Taught
- The Dynamic earth: An introduction to Physical Geology
- Freshman Seminar: Perspectives of Global Changes
- Geochemistry
- Earth Resourses
- Planet Earth: Earth System Science
- Our Changing Planet
- IT Honors Earth Science
- CLA Honors Seminar
Selected Recent Publications
- V. Rama Murthy, (2005) Radioactive isotopes: Their decay in Mantle and Core. In press, Encyclopedia of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism, Eds. D. Gubbins and E. Herrero-Bervera, Springer, 2005.
- V. Rama Murthy, Wim van Westernen and Yingwei Fei,(2003)
Experimental evidence that potassium is a substantial radioactive
heat source in planetary cores, Nature, 423, 163-165.
- Wim van Westernen, V. Rama Murthy and Yingwei Fei.
(2002) Potassium in Planetary Cores? An Experimental Study
of Potassium Partitioning between Metal and Silicate Liquids.
Lunar and Planetary Science, XXXIII.
- Karato, S.-I. and Murthy, V.Rama (1997) Core formation
and chemical equilibrium in the Earth-1: Physical considerations.
Phys. Earth Planet. Int. 100:61-79.
- Murthy, V. Rama and Karato, S.-I. (1997) Core formation
and chemical equilibrium in the Earth-2: Chemical consequences
for the mantle and core. Phys. Earth Planet. Int. 100:46-51.
Recent Research Support
- NSF, Interactive Earth Systems
- U of MN Graduate School, Negative Ion Detection System
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