The seismic significance of water and partial melting in planetary interiors

Water dissolved as hydrous defects within nominally anhydrous silicate minerals may strongly influence the speeds and attenuation of seismic waves and also tidal energy dissipation within planetary interiors. In the first rigorous test of that provocative idea, we propose to quantify the influence of water on the seismic properties of the major mantle mineral olivine under controlled laboratory conditions. The outcome will be a more secure framework for assessment of seismological models for the Earth and Moon, and a clearer picture of the role of water in their accretion, chemical differentiation and internal dynamics.