“Impact Cratering”

Dr. Eric Grosfils

Dr. Eric Grosfils

Speaker – Dr. Eric B. Grosfils, professor of geology, Pomona College

While earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other events persistently remind us that we live on the surface of a geologically hazardous planet, it is easy to forget that one of the most potentially severe threats we face originates beyond our Earth. In this talk Dr. Grosfils will provide a brief overview of impact cratering as it affected Earth in the geologic past, we will discuss what is happening in the present, and then explore what will almost certainly happen in the future.

Professor Grosfils, the Minnie B. Cairns Memorial Professor of Geology at Pomona College, majored in physics and geology as an undergraduate at the College of William and Mary before going on to receive his M.S. and Ph.D. from Brown University. As a planetary volcanologist, his goal is to improve our understanding of the mechanics of shallow magma storage and migration in order to better understand the conditions associated with some of the largest eruptions (and intrusive events) that occur on Earth and elsewhere in the solar system.

Introduction: TomHelliwell
Fellowship: Art Parker
Greeters: Peter Boniface and Milt Wilson