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G. Schubert, Editor-in-Chief
Geophysics is the physics of the Earth, the science that studies
the Earth by measuring the physical consequences of its presence
and activity. It is a science of extraordinary breadth, requiring
10 volumes of this Treatise for its description. Only a Treatise
can present a science with the breadth of geophysics if, in addition
to completeness of the subject matter, it is intended to discuss
the material in great depth. Thus, while there are many books on
geophysics dealing with its many subdivisions, a single book cannot
give more than an introductory flavor of each topic. At the
other extreme, a single book can cover one aspect of geophysics in
great detail, as is done in each of the volumes of this Treatise,
but the Treatise has the unique advantage of having been designed
as an integrated series, an important feature of an interdisciplinary
science such as geophysics. From the outset, the Treatise was planned
to cover each area of geophysics from the basics to the cutting edge
so that the beginning student could learn the subject and the advanced
researcher could have an up-to-date and thorough exposition of the
state of the field. The planning of the contents of each volume was
carried out with the active participation of the editors of all the
volumes to insure that each subject area of the Treatise benefited
from the multitude of connections to other areas.
Geophysics
includes the study of the Earth's fluid envelope and its near-space
environment. However, in this Treatise, the subject has been narrowed
to the solid Earth. The Treatise on Geophysics discusses the atmosphere,
ocean, and plasmasphere of the Earth only in connection with how
these parts of the Earth affect the solid planet. While the realm
of geophysics has here been narrowed to the solid Earth, it is broadened
to include other planets of our solar system and the planets of other
stars. Accordingly, the Treatise includes a volume on the planets,
although that volume deals mostly with the terrestrial planets of
our own solar system. The gas and ice giant planets of the outer
solar system and similar extra-solar planets are discussed
in only one chapter of the Treatise. Even the Treatise
on Geophysics must be circumscribed to some extent. One could envision a future
Treatise on Planetary and Space Physics or a Treatise on Atmospheric
and Oceanic Physics.
Geophysics is fundamentally an interdisciplinary
endeavor, built on the foundations of physics, mathematics, geology,
astronomy, and other disciplines. Its roots therefore go far back
in history, but the science has blossomed only in the last century
with the explosive increase in our ability to measure the properties
of the Earth and the processes going on inside the Earth and on and
above its surface. The technological advances of the last century
in laboratory and field instrumentation, computing, and satellite-based
remote sensing are largely responsible for the explosive growth of
geophysics. In addition to the enhanced ability to make crucial measurements
and collect and analyze enormous amounts of data, progress in geophysics
was facilitated by the acceptance of the paradigm of plate tectonics
and mantle convection in the 1960s. This new view of how the Earth
works enabled an understanding of earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain
building, indeed all of geology, at a fundamental level. The exploration
of the planets and moons of our solar system, beginning with the
Apollo missions to the Moon, has invigorated geophysics and further
extended its purview beyond the Earth. Today geophysics is a vital
and thriving enterprise involving many thousands of scientists throughout
the world. The interdisciplinarity and global nature of geophysics
identifies it as one of the great unifying endeavors of humanity.
The
keys to the success of an enterprise such as the Treatise
on Geophysics are the editors of the individual volumes and the authors who have
contributed chapters. The editors are leaders in their fields of
expertise, as distinguished a group of geophysicists as could be
assembled on the planet. They know well the topics that had to be
covered to achieve the breadth and depth required by the Treatise,
and they know who were the best of their colleagues to write on each
subject. The list of chapter authors is an impressive one, consisting
of geophysicists who have made major contributions to their fields
of study. The quality and coverage achieved by this group of editors
and authors has insured that the Treatise will be the definitive
major reference work and textbook in geophysics.
Each volume
of the Treatise begins with an Overview chapter by the volume editor.
The Overviews provide the editors' perspectives of their fields,
views of the past, present, and future. They also summarize the contents
of their volumes and discuss important topics not addressed elsewhere
in the chapters. The Overview chapters are excellent introductions
to their volumes and should not be missed in the rush to read a particular
chapter. The title and editors of the 10 volumes of the Treatise
are:
Volume 1: Seismology
and Structure of the Earth
Barbara
Romanowicz,
University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
Adam
Dziewonski, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
Volume
2: Mineral
Physics
G.
David Price, University College London, UK
Volume 3: Geodesy
Thomas
Herring, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,
MA, USA
Volume
4: Earthquake
Seismology
Hiroo
Kanamori, California
Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
Volume
5: Geomagnetism
Masaru
Kono, Okayama
University, Misasa, JP
Volume
6: Crustal
and Lithosphere Dynamics
Anthony
B. Watts, University
of Oxford, Oxford, UK
Volume
7: Mantle
Dynamics
David
Bercovici, Yale
University, New Haven, CT, USA
Volume
8: Core
Dynamics
Peter
Olson, Johns
Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
Volume
9: Evolution
of the Earth
David
Stevenson, California
Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
Volume
10: Planets
and Moons
Tilman
Spohn, Deutsches
Zentrum für Luft-und Raumfahrt, GER
In addition, an
11th volume of the Treatise provides a comprehensive index.
The
Treatise on Geophysics has the advantage of a role model to emulate,
the highly successful Treatise on Geochemistry. Indeed, the name
Treatise on Geophysics was decided on by the editors in analogy with
the geochemistry compendium. The Concise Oxford English Dictionary
defines Treatise as "a written work dealing formally and systematically
with a subject." Treatise aptly describes both the Geochemistry
and Geophysics collections.
The Treatise
on Geophysics was initially promoted by Casper van Dijk
(Publisher at Elsevier) who persuaded the Editor-in-Chief to take
on the project. Initial meetings between the two defined the scope
of the Treatise and led to invitations to the editors of the individual
volumes to participate. Once the editors were on board, the details
of the volume contents were decided and the invitations to individual
chapter authors were issued. There followed a period of hard work
by the editors and authors to bring the Treatise to completion. Thanks
are due to a number of members of the Elsevier team, Brian Ronan
(Developmental Editor), Tirza Van Daalen (Books Publisher), Zoe Kruze
(Senior Development Editor), Gareth Steed (Production Project Manager),
and Kate Newell (Editorial Assistant). |
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