Peter A. Rona

Professor I
Room 230 Wright Geological Laboratory (Busch Campus)
(732) 445-6345
Room 204E, Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences (Cook Campus)
(Phone:732-932-6555 x241; Fax: 732-932-6557)
rona@imcs.rutgers.edu

Education

• A.B., Brown University
• Ph.D., Yale University

Teaching

• Undergraduate: Marine Geology, Exploration of the Oceans, Introduction to Oceanography
• Graduate: Geodynamics, Marine Geology, Ocean Ridge Processes

Research Interests

Seafloor hydrothermal systems, ocean ridge processes, geology of Atlantic continental margins; genesis of seafloor mineral and energy resources

The research program on seafloor hydrothermal systems emphasises the tectonic and magmatic controls of hydrothermal activity at mid-ocean ridges and back-arc spreading centers; heat transfer (conductive and convective) in the systems; processes of mineralization; and dynamics of the plumes (see photo) that discharge from the hydrothermal systems involving the development and application of innovative sonar techniques to image the plumes. We are carrying out this work on seafloor hydrothermal systems and ocean ridges using surface ships, deep-diving research submersibles, and remotely operated vehicles in collaboration with other leading national and international groups.

We are developing a collaborative research program with the Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences and with other academic, governmental and industrial organizations for a multidisciplinary investigation of the continental margin in the Hudson Canyon region offshore New York and New Jersey. The focus of the investigation is the role of gas hydrates in physical, chemical and biological processes seaward of the continental shelf including slope stability and biodiversity

Recent Publications

• P.A. Rona, K.G. Bemis, C.D. Jones, D.R. Jackson, K. Mitsuzawa, and D. Silver, Entrainment and bending in a major hydrothermal plume, Main Endeavour Field, Juan de Fuca Ridge, Geophysical Research Letters, in press 2006.
• R.N. Hey, G.J Massoth, R.C. Vrijenhoek, P.A. Rona, J. Luptono, and D.A. Butterfield, Hydrothermal vent geology and biology at Earth's fastest spreading rates, Marine Geophysical Researches, DOI 10.1007/s11-1-005-1887-x, 2006
• P.A. Rona, D. R. Jackson, K.G. Bemis, C.D. Jones, K. Mitsuzawa, D.R. Palmer, and D. Silver, Acoustics advances study of sea floor hydrothermal flow, Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 83(44):497-502, 2002.
• P.A. Rona, K.G. Bemis, D. Silver, and C.D. Jones, Acoustic imaging, visualization, and quantification of buoyant hydrothermal plumes in the ocean, Marine Geophysical Researches, 23:147-168, 2002.
• P.A. Rona, Slope instability on the Hatteras and New Jersey segments of the U.S. Atlantic continental margin, Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 82(20), Spring Meeting Supplement, Invited Abstract T21A-09, S405, 2001.
• P.A. Rona, Resources of the sea floor, Science, 299:673-674, 2003. Link to article>>