IAVCEI IAVCEI
IAVCEI

 

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM

II. Using geophysics and geochemistry to probe magmatism and eruption processes  

II.10 A tribute to the life and work of Jon Davidson (1959-2016)

Conveners:  
Marjorie Wilson, The University of Leeds, UK; B.M.Wilson@leeds.ac.uk
Shanaka de Silva, CEOAS, Oregon State University; desilvas@geo.oregonstate.edu
Colin Macpherson, University of Durham, UK; colin.macpherson@durham.ac.uk
James Beard, Virginia Museum of Natural History; jim.beard@vmnh.virginia.gov
Richard Arculus, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia;
richard.arculus@anu.edu.au
Wendy Bohrson, Central Washington University; bohrson@geology.cwu.edu

Jon sadly passed away on 26th October 2016 after a valiant fight with leukaemia. His good humour and wisdom will be greatly missed.

Jon was passionate about geology and was an outstanding researcher and teacher. His primary interest was in the magmatism associated with subduction zones, although he studied magmatism in many different tectonic settings. Jon’s measured, no-nonsense approach led to the production of a large body of scientific papers in leading international journals. The clarity of both thought and reason in these papers has influenced and inspired a huge number of geoscientists. Jon was a great champion of careful, methodical fieldwork and savoured any opportunity to study physical volcanology. He was perhaps best known for his work in the Lesser Antilles and Andes, but also worked in Kamchatka, Iran, Indonesia, New Zealand and Italy. Throughout his career Jon led highly innovative developments in the applications of isotopic analyses, both in the measurement of whole-rocks and micro-analysis of their crystal cargoes, to understand how magma develops within and beneath volcanoes. He also fostered studies of diffusion chronometry. In recent years Jon led a number of cross-institutional projects aiming to integrate geophysical and geochemical data to understand the nature and location of fluid and melt fluxes in subduction systems.

The impact of Jon’s research was recognised by the award of the IAVCEI Wager medal in 1998, the Coke Medal of the Geological Society of London (GSL) in 2011 and the UK Volcanic and Magmatic Studies Group Award, also of the GSL, in 2014. Jon was elected an AGU Fellow in 2016.

We invite contributions in honour of Jon, encompassing all aspects of magmatism, which reflect the breadth of his research interests and achievements.

Confirmed Invited Speakers:
Jon Blundy (University of Bristol, U.K.)
Heather Handley (Macquarie University, Australia)
Claire McLeod (University of Miami of Ohio, U.S.A.)