Modeling the interplay of faults, magma and fluids at mid-ocean ridges

Oceanic lithosphere continuously forms at mid-ocean ridges through a combination of tectonic, hydrothermal and magmatic activity. In this talk I will discuss the way these processes manifest on human time scales as coupled earthquake and eruption cycles. I will then investigate how the balance of magmatic heat input and hydrothermal cooling controls the strength of young oceanic lithosphere, which in turn profoundly affects the morphology of the global seafloor.