Department of
Earth and Climate Science

Ajay Kumar obtained his integrated BS-MS in Geological Sciences from IISER Kolkata in 2015. He obtained his PhD in Geophysics in 2020 from Geosciences Barcelona/University of Barcelona. Before joining IISER Pune in 2024, he was a Scientist at GFZ Potsdam, Germany.

Research

Ajay's research interests are focused on studying the thermochemical and thermomechanical evolution of the lithosphere. To accomplish this, he integrates multidisciplinary data, including gravity field, passive seismological, petrological, and mineral physics, to determine the current physical state and architecture of the lithosphere. This multidisciplinary approach provides input for dynamic simulations, allowing him to gain a comprehensive understanding of the space and time evolution of fundamental driving forces of solid Earth processes. He is equally interested in earthquake sources, which have a direct impact on society, and their tectonic significance.

Selected Publications

Kumar, A., Cacace, M., & Scheck-Wenderoth, M. (2023). Thermodynamics of continental deformation. Scientific Reports, 13(1), 19920. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-47054-3

Kumar, A., Cacace, M., Scheck‐Wenderoth, M., Götze, H., & Kaus, B. J. P. (2022). Present‐Day Upper‐Mantle Architecture of the Alps: Insights From Data‐Driven Dynamic Modeling. Geophysical Research Letters, 49(18), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL099476

Kumar, A., Fernàndez, M., Jiménez‐Munt, I., Torne, M., Vergés, J., & Afonso, J. C. (2020). LitMod2D_2.0: An Improved Integrated Geophysical‐Petrological Modeling Tool for the Physical Interpretation of Upper Mantle Anomalies. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 21(3), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GC008777

Kumar, A., Mitra, S., & Suresh, G. (2015). Seismotectonics of the eastern Himalayan and indo-burman plate boundary systems. Tectonics, 34(11), 2279–2295. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015TC003979

Kumar, A., Singh, S. K., Mitra, S., Priestley, K. F., & Dayal, S. (2017). The 2015 April 25 Gorkha (Nepal) earthquake and its aftershocks: implications for lateral heterogeneity on the Main Himalayan Thrust. Geophysical Journal International, 208(2), 992–1008. https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggw438