Articles | Volume 8, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-8-423-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Special issue:
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-8-423-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Simplified modeling of the impact of lithospheric-scale geological processes on thermal histories and low-temperature thermochronometers
Dawn A. Kellett
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Geological Survey of Canada-Atlantic, Natural Resources Canada, Dartmouth, B2Y 4A2, Canada
David M. Whipp
Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, 00014 University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
Related authors
David M. Whipp, Benjamin Gérard, Sanni Laaksonen, and Dawn A. Kellett
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-2514, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-2514, 2026
Short summary
Short summary
Thermochronology is a dating method that measures the time since minerals cooled below a given temperature within the Earth, typically between 50–400 °C. Geoscientists often use thermochronology to measure how fast processes related to plate tectonics or erosion occur over timescales of millions of years. A challenge, however, is that many different temperature histories can produce the same age. In this work we introduce new software for using thermochronology to study geological processes.
David M. Whipp, Dawn A. Kellett, Isabelle Coutand, and Richard A. Ketcham
Geochronology, 4, 143–152, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-143-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-143-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Multi-thermochronometry, in which methods such as (U-Th)/He dating of zircon and apatite and apatite fission track dating are combined, is used to reconstruct rock thermal histories. Our ability to reconstruct thermal histories and interpret the geological significance of measured ages requires modeling. Here we use forward models to explore effects of grain size and chemistry on cooling ages and closure temperatures for the (U-Th)/He decay systems in apatite and zircon.
David M. Whipp, Benjamin Gérard, Sanni Laaksonen, and Dawn A. Kellett
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-2514, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-2514, 2026
Short summary
Short summary
Thermochronology is a dating method that measures the time since minerals cooled below a given temperature within the Earth, typically between 50–400 °C. Geoscientists often use thermochronology to measure how fast processes related to plate tectonics or erosion occur over timescales of millions of years. A challenge, however, is that many different temperature histories can produce the same age. In this work we introduce new software for using thermochronology to study geological processes.
David M. Whipp, Dawn A. Kellett, Isabelle Coutand, and Richard A. Ketcham
Geochronology, 4, 143–152, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-143-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-143-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Multi-thermochronometry, in which methods such as (U-Th)/He dating of zircon and apatite and apatite fission track dating are combined, is used to reconstruct rock thermal histories. Our ability to reconstruct thermal histories and interpret the geological significance of measured ages requires modeling. Here we use forward models to explore effects of grain size and chemistry on cooling ages and closure temperatures for the (U-Th)/He decay systems in apatite and zircon.
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Short summary
Geological processes like erosion, burial, and faulting can influence or perturb heat conditions in the Earth's crust through time, which can complicate our interpretation of the geological significance of rock cooling histories determined from thermochronology. This 1D modeling study quantifies and illustrates the expected relationships between various lithosphere-scale geological processes and resulting thermal histories and thermochronometer ages.
Geological processes like erosion, burial, and faulting can influence or perturb heat conditions...
Special issue