Hidden Landscapes: Geosciences Education Through Visual Art Exhibition

This presentation describes the genesis and implementation of an exhibit at the Pennsylvania State University Earth and Mineral Sciences Museum & Art Gallery. The Hidden Landscapes exhibit is designed to celebrate our research on the mantle that supports basalt volcanism on the Arabian Peninsula and make the results accessible to the university and local communities. Earth's mantle creates basalt lavas and recycles volatiles (H2O, CO2) that support life. The rocks of the mantle contain beautiful microscopic landscapes that unfortunately remain hidden from most people. Visual images are a tool to raise public interest and have the potential to teach about geosciences in a way that appeals to a wide range of people of various ages and academic backgrounds. Hidden Landscapes uses images of mantle rocks to introduce the volcanic and geodynamic history of the Northwestern Arabian Peninsula. The tectonic motion from the Dead Sea Fault, in combination with melt and fluid interactions in Earth's deep mantle, has created a rich array of continental basalt volcanoes. Understanding the complex tectonic and volcanic history of the area is key to understanding continental crust differentiation and the origins of continental basalts. Using photomicrographs of xenoliths and colorful chemical maps of individual crystal compositions obtained through electron probe microanalysis, we document the textures, deformation, metasomatic history, and beauty of volcanic and mantle rocks for college students, alumni, and school groups who visit the Museum. An accompanying online ArcStory Map increases accessibility to this exhibit and supplies supplementary information to individuals interested in more about volcanology, petrology, and the Earth's mantle. Data collected in the form of digital surveys will be used to evaluate how public outreach can change public perceptions of research and cultivate the interest in Earth Sciences in K-12 groups