On Thursday, January 29th, we had the opportunity to witness a great lecture: Zircons as a Window into the Very Early History of the Earth. It was given by Professor Bruce Watson, a distinguished UNH alumnus, now teaching at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The lecture focused on the use of zircons, a particular type of mineral, in dating and analyzing events in the so called Hadean Eon of Earth’s history. Some scientists proposed that a Mars-sized object collided with Earth to form the Moon within that eon, an event which may have created a deep magma ocean beneath the surface and subsequently inhibited the existence of a liquid water ocean on the surface. Very little of Earth’s surface from this time is preserved, and scientists must rely on information from only the oldest crystals to reconstruct this period of our planet’s history.

Impurities in these minerals allow us to date them (Uranium-lead dating) and use them as thermometers (Titanium content) among other things. Knowing the temperature on the surface of the Earth at certain times in the history of Earth is very important in writing the geological history of our planet. This is a great scientific contribution of Professor Watson, which has an immense geological importance.

This lecture drew a big crowd in the UNH MUB Theater II. It was also visited by the students who signed up for the ECE 900 Seminar course.

Thanks go out to Julie Bryce, UNH Assistant Professor of Geochemistry, for editing the text to be scientifically correct.

Oszkar Palinko

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