Dr Simon Turner
Professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Simon is a geochemist and world leader in the application of U-series isotopes to geological phenemona. His research principally concerns the processes of partial melting and magma formation within the Earth. He approaches this through the analysis of elemental concentrations and isotope ratios in silicate rocks and minerals. Simon’s particular strength lies in having worked on a broad range of problems and having utilized a large set of techniques. These include orogenic and post-orogenic magma petrogenesis, sediment provenance, crustal growth and erosion, continental flood basalts, potassic lavas associated with high plateau formation, ocean island basalts and island arc lavas. For the last 10 years or so, his research has largely concentrated on the application of short-lived, U-series isotopes to constraining the time scales of magma formation, transport and differentiation. This relatively new approach requires demanding analytical techniques and has been at the forefront of a revolution in the understanding of the physical processes of magma petrogenesis.
Simon came to Macquarie as a Federation Fellow in 2003. Prior to that he held a Royal Society Research Fellowship in the United Kingdom.
Simon is one of the leading international researchers in geology, and included amongst his many publications are nine papers in Nature and Science. His research is amongst the most frequently cited in the earth sciences literature.