Project description
Micrometeorites from the Phanerozoic: A window on cosmic dust flux
Micrometeorites, tiny particles of solar system debris that fall on Earth, mainly originate from asteroids and comets. Until recently, they were not believed to survive in the Earth’s geological rock record. Thus, efforts to understand the cosmic dust flux through time have relied on other samples or modelling tools. The ERC-funded FLUX project will attempt to extract fossil micrometeorites from selected stratigraphic intervals across the Phanerozoic, from about 540 million years ago to the present. This builds on the principal investigator’s groundbreaking proof-of-concept studies of selected stratigraphic intervals from about 400 million years ago. The project will then try to use fossil micrometeorites as a proxy of solar system-Earth dynamical interactions.
Objective
For the last 4.5 billion years, extraterrestrial (ET) materials have continuously bombarded the Earth. Today, the Solar System debris that reaches the Earth’s surface is dominated by particles less than 2 mm in size, termed micrometeorites (MMs). Until recently, the established misconception was that these MMs did not survive geological timescales, limiting reconstructions of the dust flux through time that are currently based on finding rare relict mineral phases or applying geochemical tools (e.g. Ir contents, 3He isotope ratios). Following a successful proof-of-concept study on a Late Devonian section, FLUX proposes first to extract fossil MMs from selected stratigraphic intervals across the Phanerozoic to document their characteristics and origin and second to use them as a novel high-resolution proxy to better understand the dynamical interactions between the Solar System and Earth. As such, fossil MMs may serve as an alternative new source of information on Solar System processes, complementary to classic meteorites. By combining expertise in meteoritics, geochemistry, and chemostratigraphy, FLUX addresses the following questions: 1) How did the flux of cosmic dust evolve during the Phanerozoic? 2) Can stratigraphic intervals marked by a dramatic increase in the mass of cosmic dust accreting to the Earth be identified? 3) Do increased ET flux events reflect asteroid family-forming events in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and are they influenced by changes in the shape of Earth’s orbit? 4) Can oxidized iron-rich MMs be used to reconstruct the gross primary productivity or atmospheric CO2 levels of the deep past? 5) Did ET flux fluctuations affect the global Earth environment, for example through ocean fertilization? Ultimately, FLUX will better position the Earth in the context of a dynamic Solar System and constrain the causes and consequences of the variations in the flux of cosmic dust to Earth.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences geochemistry
- natural sciences physical sciences astronomy planetary sciences meteorites
- social sciences economics and business economics production economics productivity
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2023-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1050 BRUSSEL
Belgium
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