Tag Archives: Tuzo Wilson

Tectonic Plates at 913,000 Kilometres per Hour

Posted on June 22, 2016 by Ron Miksha

The Earth’s plates move at the same blazing speed as fingernails grow. On average, 2 centimetres in a year. Blink and you won’t miss much. The ox may be slow, but the Earth is patient. In 650 million years, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Plate Tectonics | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Mantle Plumes May Be Real (or maybe not)

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Geophysicist Tuzo Wilson had a creepy daydream. He imagined himself lying at the bottom of a creek, looking up at water flowing overhead. He blew bubbles. They rose, were caught by the current, and drifted away. He came back from … Continue reading →

Posted in History, How Geophysics Works, Non-drift Theories, People, Plate Tectonics | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tuzo

Posted on November 26, 2014 by Ron Miksha

“Tuzo’s dead.” That was the first time I’d ever heard of Tuzo. It was April 1993 and I wondered who – or what – Tuzo was. Now he was dead. I had already completed my University of Saskatchewan geophysics degree … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, History, How Geophysics Works, Plate Tectonics, Science Education | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Shutting Down the Plumes?

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Near an Indian Ocean island that regularly exhausts smoke and lava, a group of scientists are trying to unravel one of the great mysteries of the Earth. Their riddle involves the planet’s largest basalt field, dinosaur extinction, and the birth … Continue reading →

Posted in Exploration, History, How Geophysics Works | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Goddess Pele is stirring

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Ron Miksha

The goddess Pele may be restless again.  It seems that the legendary fire-woman, believed by early Hawaiian islanders to live under the sea and breathe lava into the throats of mountains, may be stirring. According to the ancient legends, the … Continue reading →

Posted in History, How Geophysics Works | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment