Professor
anthony.koppers@oregonstate.edu

Office: 541-737-5425

Burt Hall

Burt Hall 352

2651 SW Orchard Avenue

2651 SW Orchard Avenue
Corvallis, OR 97331

Profile Field Tabs

At OSU
Brief Research Interests: 

Isotope geochemistry of hotspot volcanism, plate tectonic theory, mantle geodynamics

Location: 
Building: 

 

Anthony Koppers is the Associate Vice President for Research Advancement and Strategy in Oregon State's Research Office. In that role he is leading the Office of Research Advancement focusing on making OSU more competitive in securing large and complex proposals, on positioning OSU according to its research strengths by starting new strategic initiatives, and on brokering partnerships that inspire transdisciplinary science solutions to regional and global challenges. He also continues his academic and research activities as Professor in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences. Koppers studies hotspots and their associated volcanic chains using a variety of geochronology and geochemistry techniques. He earned his Ph.D. in the Earth sciences at the Free University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Current Research

Hotspots and their associated volcanic chains have been amongst the most convincing observations supporting the plate tectonic theory and have fundamental implications for understanding past plate motions and mantle geodynamics. My research encompasses many aspects in this broad field, ranging from 40Ar/39Ar geochronology and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope geochemistry of hotspot volcanism to the modeling of absolute plate motions and the possible motion of hotspots. It now can been shown that motions between hotspots are necessary for explaining the observed ages in seamount trails and that lithospheric extension may be important as a secondary process in other cases.

Since 1999 I also has been active as the webmaster for the http://earthref.org website, where we make available online databases containing large amounts of scientific data for geochemistry, paleo- and rock magnetism, seamount research and education.

I earned my M.Sc. degree (1993) and Ph.D. degree (1998) in the Earth Sciences at the Free University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Before joining COAS, I worked for 9 years at the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla.

For a detailed curriculum vitae and my latest publications, please visit my Personal Web Page ...

For info about 40Ar/39Ar geochronology at CEOAS, please visit the OSU Argon Geochronology Lab.