Thermal Regime of the Earth’s Lithosphere and the Mantle: Geothermal Studies at IPE RAS

Abstract

This paper is devoted to the historical development of geothermal research in the former Soviet Union. The history of the Laboratory of geothermics at the Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IPE RAS) from the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s when the laboratory conducted the full range of geothermal studies is described in detail. The main results are presented with the emphasis laid on the world-class studies carried out at the IPE RAS. The second part of the article presents the main recent results, including the theoretical studies of heat and mass transfer and numerical models of mantle convection.