Susan Humphris is a geologist known for her research on processes at mid-ocean ridges. She is an elected fellow of the American Geophysical Union.

Susan Elizabeth Humphris
Alma materMassachusetts Institute of Technology
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Scientific career
InstitutionsWoods Hole Oceanographic Institution
ThesisThe hydrothermal alteration of oceanic basalts by seawater (1976)
Doctoral advisorGeoff Thompson

Education and career

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Humphris grew up in the United Kingdom, where she learned to sail and enjoyed hikes that incited her interest in the natural world.[1] As a child, she was not fond of history classes, but enjoyed the other subjects.[2] Humphris has an undergraduate degree from Lancaster University (1972),[3] and earned her Ph.D. in 1976 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.[4] Following her Ph.D., she spent time as a postdoc at Imperial College in London and a year at Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory.[1] For more than a decade,[when?] Humphris was a staff scientist at Sea Education Association before she joined the staff at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in 1992.[1]

In 2013, Humphris was elected a fellow of the American Geophysical Union who cited her "For sustained and exemplary contributions to our understanding of volcanic and hydrothermal processes at mid-oceanic ridges".[5]

Research

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Humphris' research started with investigations into high temperature alterations of oceanic basalts.[6][7] She has examined the geochemistry of hydrothermal systems at multiple locations including the Walvis Ridge in the South Atlantic,[8] the mid-ocean ridges near Tristan da Cunha[9] the TAG vent field,[10][11][12] and Lucky Strike.[13] Humphris worked with the team that found evidence of life in ancient rocks in samples drilled from the Earth's mantle.[14][15] She has participated in multiple dives to the seafloor in submersibles including Nadir[16] and Alvin, and was the lead scientist for the 2012 overhaul of the DSV Alvin.[17] In 2018, she summarized scientists' progress in understanding the controls on hydrothermal vent fluid composition in an article published in Annual Review of Marine Science.[18]

Selected publications

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  • Humphris, Susan E.; Thompson, Geoffrey (January 1978). "Trace element mobility during hydrothermal alteration of oceanic basalts". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 42 (1): 127–136. Bibcode:1978GeCoA..42..127H. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(78)90222-3.
  • Humphris, Susan E.; Thompson, Geoffrey (January 1978). "Hydrothermal alteration of oceanic basalts by seawater". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 42 (1): 107–125. Bibcode:1978GeCoA..42..107H. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(78)90221-1. hdl:1721.1/54260.
  • Campbell, A. C.; Palmer, M. R.; Klinkhammer, G. P.; Bowers, T. S.; Edmond, J. M.; Lawrence, J. R.; Casey, J. F.; Thompson, G.; Humphris, S.; Rona, P.; Karson, J. A. (October 1988). "Chemistry of hot springs on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge". Nature. 335 (6190): 514–519. Bibcode:1988Natur.335..514C. doi:10.1038/335514a0. S2CID 4310961.
  • Dover, C. L. Van; Humphris, S. E.; Fornari, D.; Cavanaugh, C. M.; Collier, R.; Goffredi, S. K.; Hashimoto, J.; Lilley, M. D.; Reysenbach, A. L.; Shank, T. M.; Damm, K. L. Von; Banta, A.; Gallant, R. M.; Götz, D.; Green, D.; Hall, J.; Harmer, T. L.; Hurtado, L. A.; Johnson, P.; McKiness, Z. P.; Meredith, C.; Olson, E.; Pan, I. L.; Turnipseed, M.; Won, Y.; C. R. Young, I. I. I.; Vrijenhoek, R. C. (26 October 2001). "Biogeography and Ecological Setting of Indian Ocean Hydrothermal Vents". Science. 294 (5543): 818–823. Bibcode:2001Sci...294..818V. doi:10.1126/science.1064574. PMID 11557843. S2CID 543841.
  • Humphris, Susan E.; Herzig, P. M.; Miller, D. J.; Alt, J. C.; Becker, K.; Brown, D.; Brügmann, G.; Chiba, H.; Fouquet, Y.; Gemmell, J.B.; Guerin, G.; Hannington, M.D.; Holm, N. G.; Honnorez, J.J.; Iturrino, G.J.; Knott, R.; Ludwig, R.; Nakamura, K.; Petersen, S.; Reysenbach, A-L.; Rona, P. A.; Smith, S.; Sturz, A.A; Tivey, M.K.; Zhao, X. (October 1995). "The internal structure of an active sea-floor massive sulphide deposit". Nature. 377 (6551): 713–716. Bibcode:1995Natur.377..713H. doi:10.1038/377713a0. hdl:2027.42/62783. S2CID 4279891.

Awards and honors

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  • Nap J Buonaparte Service Award, Massachusetts Marine Educators (2003)[19]
  • Fellow, American Geophysical Union (2013)[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Freiburger, Brett (December 17, 2020). "Susan Humphris, Sharing Science Beyond the Sea – WHOI Women's Committee". Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  2. ^ "Let's Talk with Susan Humphris about the Chemistry of Deep Sea Vents". American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  3. ^ "Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution". Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  4. ^ Humphris, Susan Elizabeth (1976). The hydrothermal alteration of oceanic basalts by seawater (Thesis). Woods Hole, Mass.: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. OCLC 994435688.
  5. ^ a b "Humphris". Honors Program. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  6. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Morrison, M.Ann; Thompson, R.N. (1978). "Influence of rock crystallisation history upon subsequent lanthanide mobility during hydrothermal alteration of basalts". Chemical Geology. 23 (1–4): 125–137. Bibcode:1978ChGeo..23..125H. doi:10.1016/0009-2541(78)90070-0.
  7. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Thompson, Geoffrey (1978). "Hydrothermal alteration of oceanic basalts by seawater". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 42 (1): 107–125. Bibcode:1978GeCoA..42..107H. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(78)90221-1. hdl:1721.1/54260.
  8. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Thompson, Geoffrey (1982). "A geochemical study of rocks from the Walvis Ridge, South Atlantic". Chemical Geology. 36 (3–4): 253–274. Bibcode:1982ChGeo..36..253H. doi:10.1016/0009-2541(82)90051-1.
  9. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Thompson, Geoffrey; Schilling, Jean-Guy; Kingsley, Richard H. (1985-06-01). "Petrological and geochemical variations along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between 46°S and 32°S: Influence of the Tristan da Cunha mantle plume". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 49 (6): 1445–1464. Bibcode:1985GeCoA..49.1445H. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(85)90294-7. ISSN 0016-7037.
  10. ^ Kleinrock, Martin C.; Humphris, Susan E. (1996). "Structural control on sea-floor hydrothermal activity at the TAG active mound". Nature. 382 (6587): 149–153. Bibcode:1996Natur.382..149K. doi:10.1038/382149a0. ISSN 0028-0836. S2CID 4260378.
  11. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Kleinrock, Martin C. (1996-11-15). "Detailed morphology of the TAG Active Hydrothermal Mound: Insights into its formation and growth". Geophysical Research Letters. 23 (23): 3443–3446. Bibcode:1996GeoRL..23.3443H. doi:10.1029/96GL03079.
  12. ^ Broad, William J. (1994-08-09). "Weird Mound Offers Clues To Mysteries Of the Deep". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  13. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Fornari, Daniel J.; Scheirer, Daniel S.; German, Christopher R.; Parson, Lindsay M. (2002). "Geotectonic setting of hydrothermal activity on the summit of Lucky Strike Seamount (37°17′N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge): GEOTECTONIC SETTING". Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. 3 (8): 1–25. doi:10.1029/2001GC000284.
  14. ^ "Evidence of ancient life discovered in mantle rocks deep below the seafloor". ScienceDaily. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  15. ^ Klein, Frieder; Humphris, Susan E.; Guo, Weifu; Schubotz, Florence; Schwarzenbach, Esther M.; Orsi, William D. (2015-09-29). "Fluid mixing and the deep biosphere of a fossil Lost City-type hydrothermal system at the Iberia Margin". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 112 (39): 12036–12041. Bibcode:2015PNAS..11212036K. doi:10.1073/pnas.1504674112. PMC 4593090. PMID 26324888.
  16. ^ Nestor, James (February 12, 2018). "Life on the Rocks". Scientific American. Retrieved 2021-09-14.
  17. ^ October 2012, Wynne Parry 11 (2012-10-11). "Deep-Sea Vehicle Alvin Gets Splashy Makeover". livescience.com. Retrieved 2021-09-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ Humphris, Susan E.; Klein, Frieder (2018-01-03). "Progress in Deciphering the Controls on the Geochemistry of Fluids in Seafloor Hydrothermal Systems". Annual Review of Marine Science. 10 (1): 315–343. Bibcode:2018ARMS...10..315H. doi:10.1146/annurev-marine-121916-063233. ISSN 1941-1405. PMID 28853997.
  19. ^ "MME Award Recipients" (PDF). Retrieved September 11, 2021.
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