Does seismic activity control carbon exchanges between transform-faults in old ocean crust and the deep sea? A hypothesis examined by the EU COST network FLOWS

The European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST)-Action FLOWS (http://www.cost.eu/domains_actions/essem/Actions/ES1301) was initiated on the 25^th of October 2013. It is a consortium formed by members of currently 14 COST countries and external partners striving to better understand the interplay between earthquakes and fluid flow at transform-faults in old oceanic crust. The recent occurrence of large earthquakes and discovery of deep fluid seepage calls for a revision of the postulated hydrogeological inactivity and low seismic activity of old oceanic transform-type plate boundaries, and indicates that earthquakes and fluid flow are intrinsically associated.

This Action merges the expertise of a large number of research groups and supports the development of multidisciplinary knowledge on how seep fluid (bio)chemistry relates to seismicity. It aims to identify (bio)geochemical proxies for the detection of precursory seismic signals and to develop innovative physico-chemical sensors for deep-ocean seismogenic faults. National efforts are coordinated through Working Groups (WGs) focused on 1) geophysical and (bio)geochemical data acquisition; 2) modelling of structure and seismicity of faults; 3) engineering of deep-ocean physico-chemical seismic sensors; and 4) integration and dissemination.

This poster will illustrate the overarching goals of the FLOWS Group, with special focus to research goals concerning the role of seismic activity in controlling the release of carbon from the old ocean crust into the deep ocean.