Scientists studied the sediments deposited by the MOW in the Gulf of Cadiz and the SW Portuguese continental margin to understand the opening of the Gibraltar Gateway, the onset of the MOW, and its influence on the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation, sea level changes and past climate oscillations.
By installing three subseafloor observatories (“CORKs”) into the ocean crust, IODP scientists gained new information that help to understand what life is like below the ocean floor.
Scientists focused on the boundary conditions of lithology, fluid flow, and thermal structure that trigger unstable slip in the seismogenic zone to better understand the processes that control large earthquakes at these sites.
Scientists drilled a deep hole into intact oceanic basement to understand the formation of oceanic crust and the magmatic rocks of the lower crust.
Scientists studied cores to better understand the movement and evolution of a hotspot that created a chain of underwater volcanoes.