Structure and Physics of the Solid Earth (SPSE)

The Structure and Physics of the Solid Earth Program (SPSE) aims to advance fundamental knowledge about the ongoing dynamical processes over the age of the Earth that evolve the structure of planet Earth and underpin geohazards. SPSE supports research at all temporal and spatial scales, from the Earth's core to its lithosphere, encompassing a wide range of disciplines including structural geology, tectonics, and geophysics. Through laboratory, field, theoretical, and computational studies, the program supports research that can help improve our understanding of natural hazards including earthquakes and mass flows, as well as Earth's formation and its magnetic field. Research areas include fundamental physical processes that underpin geohazards, deformation processes and their tectonic drivers, physical and rheological properties of Earth materials, mantle structure and dynamics, core structure and geodynamo, and global and planetary-scale processes.