Andrew Smye

Andrew Smye is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geosciences at The Pennsylvania State University, specializing in metamorphic petrology and radiogenic isotope geochemistry. His research focuses on understanding the thermal and chemical evolution of Earth's continental lithosphere through field and theoretical studies.

Research Projects

• Lower crustal and upper mantle xenoliths from the Rio Grande rift: Investigating continental rifting mechanisms.
• Lawsonite pseudomorphs in garnet crystals: Studying high-pressure metamorphic rock exhumation processes.
• U-Pb systematics of rutile: Exploring Pb mobility in lower crustal xenoliths.
• Deep crustal metamorphism and extension: Modeling P-T-t paths during lithospheric deformation.
• Noble gas systematics in subduction zones: Tracing volatile transport pathways.
• Fluid transport in eclogites: Analyzing reactive flow under sub-arc conditions.

Collaborators include Marco Scambelluri (UNIGE), Brad Hacker (UCSB), Rosie Jones and Chris Ballentine (Oxford), and N. Roberts (NIGL). Advanced analytical techniques like laser ablation ICP-MS and electron microprobe analysis are central to his work.