IDIL Fieldwork: From ocean drilling to field discoveries in Italy 🌊

We are pleased to highlight the recent experience of Geoffrey, a student in our "Earth and Water under Global Change" master's program, during his scientific visit to Italy 🌍

Geoffrey took part in a conference in Sestri Levante, Liguria, during which he attended presentations and poster sessions alongside researchers from different disciplines. All were working on samples collected during expedition 399 of the International Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) at the Atlantis Massif site in the Atlantic.

Each scientist contributed his or her own expertise, notably in geochemistry (Geoffrey's specialty), but also in magnetism, petrology, deformation and microbiology. These interdisciplinary exchanges enabled them to cross-fertilize their results and better understand the links between magmatic, hydrothermal and microbiological processes within the oceanic lithosphere.

The trip also included two days in the field. Geoffrey first explored the Ligurian coast, near Bonassola and Levanto, to observe terrestrial analogues of the rocks studied at sea. He then travelled to the Erro-Tobbio massif to examine geological processes similar to those on the ocean floor.

This immersion enabled Geoffrey to link field observations and laboratory data, and deepen his understanding of rock alteration and the origins of life at depth. Congratulations to Geoffrey for this remarkable scientific experience! 👏