The November 2002 eruption at Piton de la Fournaise volcano,La Réunion Island: ground deformation,seismicity, and pit crater collapse

An eruption on the eastern flank of Piton de la Fournaise volcano started on 16 November, 2002 after 10 months of quiescence. After a relatively constant level of activity during the first 13 days of the eruption, lava discharge, volcanic tremor and seismicity increased from 29 November to 3 December. Lava effusion suddenly ceased on 3 December while shallow earthquakes beneath the Dolomieu summit crater were still recorded at a rate of about one per minute. This unusual activity continued and increased in intensity over the next three weeks, ending with the formation of a pit crater within Dolomieu. Based on ground deformation, measured by rapid-static and continuous GPS and an extensometer, seismic data, and lava effusion patterns, the eruptive period is divided into five stages: 1) slow summit inflation and sporadic seismicity; 2) rapid summit inflation and a short seismic crisis; 3) rapid flank inflation, onset of summit deflation, sporadic seismicity, accompanied by stable effusion; 4) flank inflation, coupled with summit deflation, intense seismicity, and increased lava effusion; and finally 5) little deflation, intense shallow seismicity, and the end of lava effusion. We propose a model in which the pre-intrusive inflation of Stage 1 in the months preceding the eruption was caused by a magma body located near sea level. The magma reservoir was the source of an intrusion rising under the summit during Stage 2. In Stage 3, the magma ponded at a shallow level in the edifice while the lateral injection of a radial dike reached the surface on the eastern flank of the basaltic volcano, causing lava effusion. Pressure decrease in the magmatic plumbing system followed, resulting in upward migration of a collapse front, forming a subterranean column of debris by faulting and stoping. This caused intense shallow seismicity, increase in discharge of lava and volcanic tremor at the lateral vent in Stage 4 and, eventually the formation of a pit crater in Stage 5.     

Seismic activity related to the 1991 eruption of Colima Volcano,Mexico

Ten years after the last effusive eruption and at least 15 years of seismic quiescence, volcanic seismic activity started at Colima volcano on 14 February 1991, with a seismic crisis which reached counts of more than 100 per day and showed a diversity of earthquake types. Four other distinct seismic crises followed, before a mild effusive eruption in April 1991. The second crisis preceded the extrusion of an andesitic scoriaceous lava lobe, first reported on 1 March; during this crisis an interesting temporary concentration of seismic foci below the crater was observed shortly before the extrusion was detected. The third crisis was constituted by shallow seismicity, featuring possible mild degassing explosion-induced activity in the form of hiccups (episodes of simple wavelets that repeat with diminishing amplitude), and accompanied by increased fumarolic activity. The growth of the new lava dome was accompanied by changing seismicity. On 16 April during the fifth crisis which consisted of some relatively large, shallow, volcanic earthquakes and numerous avalanches of older dome material, part of the newly extruded dome, which had grown towards the edge of the old dome, collapsed, producing the largest avalanches and ash flows. Afterwards, block lava began to flow slowly along the SW flank of the volcano, generating frequent small incandescent avalanches. The seismicity associated with the stages of this eruptive activity shows some interesting features: most earthquake foci were located north of the summit, some of them relatively deep (7–11 km below the summit level), underneath the saddle between the Colima and the older Nevado volcanoes. An apparently seismic quiet region appears between 4 and 7 km below the summit level. In June, harmonic tremors were detected for the first time, but no changes in the eruptive activity could be correlated with them. After June, the seismicity decreasing trend was established, and the effusive activity stopped on September 1991.     

Broadband seismic experiment at Merapi Volcano, Java, Indonesia: very-long-period pulses embedded in multiphase earthquakes

Multiphase (MP) and low frequency (LF) earthquakes with spectral peak amplitudes at 3–4 and 1 Hz, respectively, are two common types of shallow volcanic earthquakes previously recognized at Merapi Volcano. Their mechanisms are poorly understood but MPs have been temporally associated with lava dome growth. We conducted a seismic experiment in January–February 1998, using four broadband seismographs to investigate the nature of seismic activity associated with dome growth. During our experiment, Merapi experienced mild dome growth with low-level seismic activity. We compare our data to that recorded on a local short-period (SP) network, with the following preliminary results.MP and LF events as recorded and classified on the short-period network instruments were recognized on the broadband network. Frequency spectrograms revealed similar patterns in the near summit region at widely separated broadband stations. Higher frequency spectra than previously recognized were identified for both MP and LF events, and were strongly attenuated as a function of radial distance from the source. Thus the spectral characteristics of these events as recorded on far-field stations are not fully indicative of the source processes. In particular, many events classified as LF-type appear to have much high frequency energy near the source. This aspect of these so-called LF earthquakes, and their association with very-long-period (VLP) pulses, suggests that many events identified in the far-field as LF events are in actuality a variety of the MP event and involve similar source processes. Broadband records indicated that simple large-amplitude VLP pulses were embedded in MP and LF wavetrains. From event to event these pulses were similar in their waveforms and had periods of 4 s. VLP events embedded in LF and MP earthquakes were located using particle motions. The epicenters were clustered in a central region of the dome complex, and preliminary source depths were within about 100 m of the dome surface, suggesting a source region deep within the dome or the uppermost conduit. A similar source location was established by study of MP high-frequency onsets. Our broadband data suggests that we have recorded both elastic seismic waves and a simple embedded pulse that is interpreted to represent a surface tilt at the seismometer site. The inferred tilt indicates an inflation and subsequent deflation, possibly caused by a gas pressure pulse or episodic shallow magma transport with stick-slip movement of the conduit wall.     

Detection of a new summit crater on Bezymianny Volcano lava dome: satellite and field-based thermal data

An explosive eruption occurred at the summit of Bezymianny volcano (Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia) on 11 January 2005 which was initially detected from seismic observations by the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT). This prompted the acquisition of 17 Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) satellite images of the volcano over the following 10 months. Visible and infrared data from ASTER revealed significant changes to the morphology of the summit lava dome, later seen with field based thermal infrared (TIR) camera surveys in August 2005. The morphology of the summit lava dome was observed to have changed from previous year’s observations and historical accounts. In August 2005 the dome contained a new crater and two small lava lobes. Stepped scarps within the new summit crater suggest a partial collapse mechanism of formation, rather than a purely explosive origin. Hot pyroclastic deposits were also observed to have pooled in the moat between the current lava dome and the 1956 crater wall. The visual and thermal data revealed a complex eruption sequence of explosion(s), viscous lava extrusion, and finally the formation of the collapse crater. Based on this sequence, the conduit could have become blocked/pressurized, which could signify the start of a new behavioural phase for the volcano and lead to the potential of larger eruptions in the future.     

Mechanism of explosive eruptions of Kilauea Volcano,Hawaii

A small explosive eruption of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii, occurred in May 1924. The eruption was preceded by rapid draining of a lava lake and transfer of a large volume of magma from the summit reservoir to the east rift zone. This lowered the magma column, which reduced hydrostatic pressure beneath Halemaumau and allowed groundwater to flow rapidly into areas of hot rock, producing a phreatic eruption. A comparison with other events at Kilauea shows that the transfer of a large volume of magma out of the summit reservoir is not sufficient to produce a phreatic eruption. For example, the volume transferred at the beginning of explosive activity in May 1924 was less than the volumes transferred in March 1955 and January–February 1960, when no explosive activity occurred. Likewise, draining of a lava lake and deepening of the floor of Halemaumau, which occurred in May 1922 and August 1923, were not sufficient to produce explosive activity. A phreatic eruption of Kilauea requires both the transfer of a large volume of magma from the summit reservoir and the rapid removal of magma from near the surface, where the surrounding rocks have been heated to a sufficient temperature to produce steam explosions when suddenly contacted by groundwater.     

Preliminary report on the activity at Unzen Volcano (Japan), November 1990-November 1991: Dacite lava domes and pyroclastic flows

The eruption of Unzen Volcano commenced on 17 November 1990. Phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions occurred by early May 1991. No large-scale explosive eruptions preceded the extrusion of lava domes. Lava domes appeared in a summit crater on 20 May 1991, and they grew on the steep slope of Mt. Fugen at Unzen Volcano. Rockfalls from the margins of the domes frequently generated pyroclastic flows. Major pyroclastic flows occurred on 3 June, 8 June, and 15 September 1991. The 3 June pyroclastic flow killed forty-three persons. Many of the pyroclastic flows seem to have resulted from the simple rockfalls, except one flow on 8 June, which was accompanied by an explosion from the crater. Many of the rockfalls that generated pyroclastic flows were witnessed. As of November 1991. Unzen Volcano was still active with a nearly constant magma-supply rate of about 0.3 × 10⁶ m³/d. The total magma output exceeded 45 × 10⁶ m³ by the beginning of November 1991. The volume of the lava domes is more than 23 × 10⁶ m³.     

The occurrence of Mt Barca flank eruption in the evolution of the NW periphery of Etna volcano (Italy)

Geological surveys, tephrostratigraphic study, and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age determinations have allowed us to chronologically constrain the geological evolution of the lower NW flank of Etna volcano and to reconstruct the eruptive style of the Mt Barca flank eruption. This peripheral sector of the Mt Etna edifice, corresponding to the upper Simeto valley, was invaded by the Ellittico volcano lava flows between 41 and 29 ka ago when the Mt Barca eruption occurred. The vent of this flank eruption is located at about 15 km away from the summit craters, close to the town of Bronte. The Mt Barca eruption was characterized by a vigorous explosive activity that produced pyroclastic deposits dispersed eastward and minor effusive activity with the emission of a 1.1-km-long lava flow. Explosive activity was characterized by a phreatomagmatic phase followed by a magmatic one. The geological setting of this peripheral sector of the volcano favors the interaction between the rising magma and the shallow groundwater hosted in the volcanic pile resting on the impermeable sedimentary basement. This process produced phreatomagmatic activity in the first phase of the eruption, forming a pyroclastic fall deposit made of high-density, poorly vesicular scoria lapilli and lithic clasts. Conversely, during the second phase, a typical strombolian fall deposit formed. In terms of hazard assessment, the possible occurrence of this type of highly explosive flank eruption, at lower elevation in the densely inhabited areas, increases the volcanic risk in the Etnean region and widens the already known hazard scenario.     

Pyroclastic phases of a rhyolitic dome-building eruption: Puketarata tuff ring,Taupo Volcanic Zone,New Zealand

The 14 ka Puketarata eruption of Maroa caldera in Taupo Volcanic Zone was a dome-related event in which the bulk of the 0.25 km³ of eruption products were emplaced as phreatomagmatic fall and surge deposits. A rhyolitic dike encountered shallow groundwater during emplacement along a NE-trending normal fault, leading to shallow-seated explosions characterised by low to moderate water/magma ratios. The eruption products consist of two lava domes, a proximal tuff ring, three phreatic collapse craters, and a widespread fall deposit. The pyroclastic deposits contain dominantly dense juvenile clasts and few foreign lithics, and relate to very shallow-level disruption of the growing dome and its feeder dike with relatively little involvement of country rock. The distal fall deposit, representing 88% of the eruption products is, despite its uniform appearance and apparently subplinian dispersal, a composite feature equivalent to numerous discrete proximal phreatomagmatic lapilli fall layers, each deposited from a short-lived eruption column. The Puketarata products are subdivided into four units related to successive phases of:(A) shallow lava intrusion and initial dome growth; (B) rapid growth and destruction of dome lobes; (C) slower, sustained dome growth and restriction of explosive disruption to the dome margins; and (D) post-dome withdrawal of magma and crater-collapse. Phase D was phreatic, phases A and C had moderate water: magma ratios, and phase B a low water: magma ratio. Dome extrusion was most rapid during phase B, but so was destruction, and hence dome growth was largely accomplished during phase C. The Puketarata eruption illustrates how vent geometry and the presence of groundwater may control the style of silicic volcanism. Early activity was dominated by these external influences and sustained dome growth only followed after effective exclusion of external water from newly emplaced magma.     

A multi-disciplinary study of the 2002–03 Etna eruption: insights into a complex plumbing system

The 2002–03 Mt Etna flank eruption began on 26 October 2002 and finished on 28 January 2003, after three months of continuous explosive activity and discontinuous lava flow output. The eruption involved the opening of eruptive fissures on the NE and S flanks of the volcano, with lava flow output and fire fountaining until 5 November. After this date, the eruption continued exclusively on the S flank, with continuous explosive activity and lava flows active between 13 November and 28 January 2003. Multi-disciplinary data collected during the eruption (petrology, analyses of ash components, gas geochemistry, field surveys, thermal mapping and structural surveys) allowed us to analyse the dynamics of the eruption. The eruption was triggered either by (i) accumulation and eventual ascent of magma from depth or (ii) depressurisation of the edifice due to spreading of the eastern flank of the volcano. The extraordinary explosivity makes the 2002–03 eruption a unique event in the last 300 years, comparable only with La Montagnola 1763 and the 2001 Lower Vents eruptions. A notable feature of the eruption was also the simultaneous effusion of lavas with different composition and emplacement features. Magma erupted from the NE fissure represented the partially degassed magma fraction normally residing within the central conduits and the shallow plumbing system. The magma that erupted from the S fissure was the relatively undegassed, volatile-rich, buoyant fraction which drained the deep feeding system, bypassing the central conduits. This is typical of most Etnean eccentric eruptions. We believe that there is a high probability that Mount Etna has entered a new eruptive phase, with magma being supplied to a deep reservoir independent from the central conduit, that could periodically produce sufficient overpressure to propagate a dyke to the surface and generate further flank eruptions.Editorial responsibility: J. Donnelly-Nolan     

Reconstruction of the eruptive history of Usu volcano,Hokkaido, Japan,inferred from petrological correlation between tephras and dome lavas

Usu volcano has erupted nine times since 1663. Most eruptive events started with an explosive eruption, which was followed by the formation of lava domes. However, the ages of several summit lava domes and craters remain uncertain. The petrological features of tephra deposits erupted from 1663 to 1853 are known to change systematically. In this study, we correlated lavas with tephras under the assumption that lava and tephra samples from the same event would have similar petrological features. Although the initial explosive eruption in 1663 was not accompanied by lava effusion, lava dome or cryptodome formation was associated with subsequent explosive eruptions. We inferred the location of the vent associated with each event from the location of the associated lava dome and the pyroclastic flow deposit distribution and found that the position of the active vent within the summit caldera differed for each eruption from the late 17th through the 19th century. Moreover, we identified a previously unrecognized lava dome produced by a late 17th century eruption; this dome was largely destroyed by an explosive eruption in 1822 and was replaced by a new lava dome during a later stage of the 1822 event at nearly the same place as the destroyed dome. This new interpretation of the sequence of events is consistent with historical sketches and documents. Our results show that petrological correlation, together with geological evidence, is useful not only for reconstructing volcanic eruption sequences but also for gaining insight into future potential disasters.     

What makes flank eruptions? The 2001 Etna eruption and its possible triggering mechanisms

Most flank eruptions within a central stratovolcano are triggered by lateral draining of magma from its central conduit, and only few eruptions appear to be independent of the central conduit. In order to better highlight the dynamics of flank eruptions in a central stratovolcano, we review the eruptive history of Etna over the last 100 years. In particular, we take into consideration the Mount Etna eruption in 2001, which showed both summit activity and a flank eruption interpreted to be independent from the summit system. The eruption started with the emplacement of a ~N-S trending peripheral dike, responsible for the extrusion of 75% of the total volume of the erupted products. The rest of the magma was extruded through the summit conduit system (SE crater), feeding two radial dikes. The distribution of the seismicity and structures related to the propagation of the peripheral dike and volumetric considerations on the erupted magmas exclude a shallow connection between the summit and the peripheral magmatic systems during the eruption. Even though the summit and the peripheral magmatic systems were independent at shallow depths (<3 km b.s.l.), petro-chemical data suggest that a common magma rising from depth fed the two systems. This deep connection resulted in the extrusion of residual magma from the summit system and of new magma from the peripheral system. Gravitational stresses predominate at the surface, controlling the emplacement of the dikes radiating from the summit; conversely, regional tectonics, possibly related to N-S trending structures, remains the most likely factor to have controlled at depth the rise of magma feeding the peripheral eruption.     

The volcanic and magmatic evolution of Volcán Ollagüe, a high-K, late quaternary stratovolcano in the Andean Central Volcanic Zone

Volcán Ollagüe is a high-K, calc-alkaline composite volcano constructed upon extremely thick crust in the Andean Central Volcanic Zone. Volcanic activity commenced with the construction of an andesitic to dacitic composite cone composed of numerous lava flows and pyroclastic deposits of the Vinta Loma series and an overlying coalescing dome and coulée sequence of the Chasca Orkho series. Following cone construction, the upper western flank of Ollagüe collapsed toward the west leaving a collapse-amphitheater about 3.5 km in diameter and a debris avalanche deposit on the lower western flank of the volcano. The deposit is similar to the debris avalanche deposit produced during the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, U.S.A., and was probably formed in a similar manner. It presently covers an area of 100 km² and extends 16 km from the summit. Subsequent to the collapse event, the upper western flank was reformed via eruption of several small andesitic lava flows from vents located near the western summit and growth of an andesitic dome within the collapse-amphitheater. Additional post-collapse activity included construction of a dacitic dome and coulée of the La Celosa series on the northwest flank. Field relations indicate that vents for the Vinta Loma and post-collapse series were located at or near the summit of the cone. The Vinta Loma series is characterized by an anhydrous, two-pyroxene assemblage. Vents for the La Celosa and Chasca Orkho series are located on the flanks and strike N55 W, radial to the volcano. The pattern of flank eruptions coincides with the distribution in the abundance of amphibole and biotite as the main mafic phenocryst phases in the rocks. A possible explanation for this coincidence is that an unexposed fracture or fault beneath the volcano served as a conduit for both magma ascent and groundwater circulation. In addition to the lava flows at Ollagüe, magmas are also present as blobs of vesiculated basaltic andesite and mafic andesite that occur as inclusions in nearly all of the lavas. All eruptive activity at Ollagüe predates the last glacial episode ( 11.000 a B.P.), because post-collapse lava flows are overlain by moraine and are incised by glacial valleys. Present activity is restricted to emission of a persistent, 100-m-high fumarolic steam plume from a vent located within the summit andesite dome.Sr and Nd isotope ratios for the basaltic andesite and mafic andesite inclusions and lavas suggest that they have assimilated large amounts of crust during crystal fractionation. In contrast, narrow ranges in ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in the andesitic and dacitic lavas are enigmatic with respect to crustal contamination.     

Thermal monitoring of Lascar Volcano, Chile, using infrared data from the along-track scanning radiometer: a 1992–1995 time series

 Lascar Volcano (22°22'S, 67°44'W) is the most active volcano of the central Andes of northern Chile. Activity since 1984 has been characterised by periods of lava dome growth and decay within the active crater, punctuated by explosive eruptions. We present herein a technique for monitoring the high-temperature activity within the active crater using frequent measurements of emitted shortwave infrared (SWIR) radiation made by the spaceborne along-track scanning radiometer (ATSR). The ATSR is an instrument of low spatial resolution (pixels 1 km across) that shares certain characteristics with the MODIS instrument, planned for use as a volcano monitoring tool in the NASA EOS Volcanology Project. We present a comprehensive time series of over 60 cloud- and plume-free nighttime ATSR observations for 1992–1995, a period during which Lascar experienced its largest historical eruption. Variations in short wavelength infrared flux relate directly to changes in high-temperature surfaces within the active crater. From these data, interpretations can be made that supplement published field reports and that can document the presence and status of the lava dome during periods where direct, ground-based, observations are lacking. Our data agree with less frequent information collected from sensors with high spatial resolution, such as the Landsat thematic mapper (Oppenheimer et al. 1993) and are consistent with field observations and models that relate subsidence of the dome to subsequent explosive eruptions (Matthews et al., 1997). Most obviously, Lascar's major April 1993 eruption follows a period in which the magnitude of emitted shortwave infrared radiation fell by 90%. At this time subsidence of the 1991–1992 lava dome was reported by field observers and this subsidence is believed to have impeded the escape of hot volatiles and ultimately triggered the eruption (Smithsonian Institution 1993a). Extrapolating beyond the period for which field observations of the summit are available, our data show that the vulcanian eruption of 20 July 1995 occurred after a period of gradual increase in short wavelength infrared flux throughout 1994 and a more rapid flux decline during 1995. We attribute this additional, otherwise undocumented, cycle of increasing and decreasing SWIR radiance as most likely representing variations in degassing through fumaroles contained within the summit crater. Alternatively, it may reflect a cycle of dome growth and decay. The explosive eruption of 17 December 1993 appears to have followed a similar, but shorter, variation in SWIR flux, and we conclude that large explosive eruptions are more likely when the 1.6-μm signal has fallen from a high to a low level. The ATSR instrument offers low-cost data at high temporal resolution. Despite the low spatial detail of the measurements, ATSR-type instruments can provide data that relate directly to the status of Lascar's lava dome and other high-temperature surfaces. We suggest that such data can therefore assist with predictions of eruptive behaviour, deduced from application of physical models of lava dome development at this and similar volcanoes. Received: 1 October 1996 / Accepted: 13 January 1997     

Summit eruptions of Klyuchevskoi Volcano,Kamchatka in the early 21st century, 2003–2013

This paper is concerned with eruptions, seismicity, and deformation on Klyuchevskoi Volcano during the summit eruptions of 2012–2013, with the condition of the central crater during the eruptions, and with the effect that is exerted by the height of the lava in the crater on the start of the eruptions. The recurrence of eruptions in the North Volcanic Cluster (NVC), Kamchatka showed that all the four volcanoes in the cluster (Klyuchevskoi, Tolbachik, Shiveluch, and Bezymyannyi) become active during definite phases that were identified in the 18.6-year lunar cycle. This relationship of the NVC eruptions to the active phases in the 18.6-year lunar cycle, as well as the relationship to the 11-year solar activity, showed that eruptions can be predicted, yielding long-term estimates of activity for the NVC volcanoes. The short-term prediction of volcanic eruptions requires knowledge of seismicity and deformation that occur during the precursory period and during the occurrence of eruptions. Seismic activity during the summit eruptions of 2003–2013 took place in the depth range 20–25 km during repose periods of the volcano and at depths of 0–5 km in the volcanic edifice during the eruption. One notes an almost complete absence of any earthquakes at great depths during the summit eruptions. Volcanic tremor (VT) was recorded from the time that the eruptions began and continued to occur until the end. Geodetic measurements showed that the center of the magma pressure beneath the volcano during the parasitic and summit eruptions of 1979–1989 moved in the 4–17 km depth range, while during the summit eruptions of 2003–2013 the center moved in the 15–20 km range. These changes in the depth of the center of magma pressure may have been related to evacuation from shallow magma chambers.     

Activity of Hawaiian Volcanoes during the years 1940–1950

Summit eruptions of Mauna Loa, on the Island of Hawaii, occurred in 1940 and 1949, and flank eruptions in 1942 and 1950. Lava poured out in 1940 and 1942 was about equal in amount, totaling approximately 76 million cubic meters in each eruption. The 1949 eruption was somewhat smaller, liberating approximately 59 million cubic meters. The 1950 eruption was one of the largest on record, producing five large lava flows and several smaller ones, totaling approximately 459 million cubic meters. Three of the 1950 flows entered the sea. In 1942 a lava flow threatened the city of Hilo, and was bombed from the air in an effort to divert it. Calculations indicate that the gas content of the lava extruded during the 1940 eruption probably was in the vicinity of one percent by weight of the total magma. Other calculations indicate the viscosity of fluid Hawaiian lava to be in the range of 10³ to 10⁵ poises. Temperature readings on the 1950 lava ranged from 1090⁰ to 900⁰ C. Kilauea Volcano showed signs of uneasiness in 1944, with an apparent increase of magmatic pressure indicated by outward tilting of the moutain flanks and a series of earthquakes progressing toward the surface. In December 1950 a series of earthquakes accompanied a subsidence of the summit of Kilauea Volcano.     

Magma discharge variations during the 2011 eruptions of Shinmoe-dake volcano, Japan, revealed by geodetic and satellite observations

We present precise geodetic and satellite observation-based estimations of the erupted volume and discharge rate of magma during the 2011 eruptions of Kirishima-Shinmoe-dake volcano, Japan. During these events, the type and intensity of eruption drastically changed within a week, with three major sub-Plinian eruptions on January 26 and 27, and a continuous lava extrusion from January 29 to 31. In response to each eruptive event, borehole-type tiltmeters detected deflation of a magma chamber caused by migration of magma to the surface. These measurements enabled us to estimate the geodetic volume change in the magma chamber caused by each eruptive event. Erupted volumes and discharge rates were constrained during lava extrusion using synthetic aperture radar satellite imaging of lava accumulation inside the summit crater. Combining the geodetic volume change and the volume of lava extrusion enabled the determination of the erupted volume and discharge rate during each sub-Plinian event. These precise estimates provide important information about magma storage conditions in magma chambers and eruption column dynamics, and indicate that the Shinmoe-dake eruptions occurred in a critical state between explosive and effusive eruption.     

Deformation of Mount Etna, 1971–1974

Electro-optical distance measurements made on the summit of Mt. Etna from 1971 to 1974 show evidence of large surface deformation of the volcano. This deformation cannot be satisfactorily analysed in terms of the models of subsurface magma reservoirs of various geometries that have been previously used, as they have, for instance, on Kilauea in Hawaii. A model that gives a better fit between the observed and computed data involves horizontal, radial strain about an open, cylindrical magma column. In this model, strain is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the centre of the deformation. This strain pattern is probably confined to the immediate vicinity of the summit vents and is of a different nature lower down the volcano. Tiltmeter, precise levelling and distance measurement data collected over the period of a small flank eruption in January–March 1974 indicate that the eruption was fed by magma through a conduit from the summit reservoir system of the Chasm and Bocca Nuova. Inflation of the summit around the Northeast Crater, which had been measured since 1971, continued despite the flank eruption, and eruptive activity was resumed at the Northeast Crater in September 1974.     

Tyatya Volcano, southwestern Kuril arc: Recent eruptive activity inferred from widespread tephra

Abstract Tyatya Volcano, situated in Kunashir Island at the southwestern end of Kuril Islands, is a large composite stratovolcano and one of the most active volcanoes in the Kuril arc. The volcanic edifice can be divided into the old and the young ones, which are composed of rocks of distinct magma types, low‐ and medium‐K series, respectively. The young volcano has a summit caldera with a central cone. Recent eruptions have occurred at the central cone and at the flank vents of the young volcano. We found several distal ash layers at the volcano and identified their ages and sources, that is, tephras of ad 1856, ad 1739, ad 1694 and ca 1 Ka derived from three volcanoes of Hokkaido, Japan, and caad 969 from Baitoushan Volcano of China/North Korea. These could provide good time markers to reveal the eruptive history of the central cone, which had continued intermittently with Strombolian eruptions and lava flow effusions since before 1 Ka. Relatively explosive eruptions have occurred three times at the cone during the past 1000 years. We revealed that, topographically, the youngest lava flows from the cone are covered not by the tephra of ad 1739 but by that of ad 1856. This evidence, together with a report of dense smoke rising from the summit in ad 1812, suggests that the latest major eruption with lava effusion from the central cone occurred in this year. In 1973, after a long period of dormancy, short‐lived phreatomagmatic eruptions began to occur from fissure vents at the northern flank of the young volcano. This was followed by large eruptions of Strombolian to sub‐Plinian types occurring from several craters at the southern flank. The 1973 activity is evaluated as Volcanic Explosivity Index = 4 (approximately 0.2 km³), the largest eruption during the 20th century in the southwestern Kuril arc. The rocks of the central cone are strongly porphyritic basalt and basaltic andesite, whereas the 1973 scoria is aphyric basalt, suggesting that magma feeding systems are definitely different between the summit and flank eruptions.     

The 1984 to 1996 cyclic activity of Lascar Volcano, northern Chile: cycles of dome growth, dome subsidence, degassing and explosive eruptions

 Lascar Volcano (5592 m; 23°22'S, 67°44'W) entered a new period of vigorous activity in 1984, culminating in a major explosive eruption in April 1993. Activity since 1984 has been characterised by cyclic behaviour with recognition of four cycles up to the end of 1993. In each cycle a lava dome is extruded in the active crater, accompanied by vigorous degassing through high-temperature, high-velocity fumaroles distributed on and around the dome. The fumaroles are the source of a sustained steam plume above the volcano. The dome then subsides back into the conduit. During the subsidence phase the velocity and gas output of the fumaroles decrease, and the cycle is completed by violent explosive activity. Subsidence of both the dome and the crater floor is accommodated by movement on concentric, cylindrical or inward-dipping conical fractures. The observations are consistent with a model in which gas loss from the dome is progressively inhibited during a cycle and gas pressure increases within and below the lava dome, triggering a large explosive eruption. Factors that can lead to a decrease in gas loss include a decrease in magma permeability by foam collapse, reduction in permeability due to precipitation of hydrothermal minerals in the pores and fractures within the dome and in country rock surrounding the conduit, and closure of open fractures during subsidence of the dome and crater floor. Dome subsidence may be a consequence of reduction in magma porosity (foam collapse) as degassing occurs and pressurisation develops as the permeability of the dome and conduit system decreases. Superimposed upon this activity are small explosive events of shallow origin. These we interpret as subsidence events on the concentric fractures leading to short-term pressure increases just below the crater floor. Received: 12 December 1996 / Accepted: 6 May 1997     

SAR- and gravity change-based characterization of the distribution pattern of pyroclastic flow deposits at Mt. Merapi during the past 10 years

Mt. Merapi, Indonesia, is one of the most active and dangerous volcanoes in the Torrid Zone. This volcano has erupted frequently and has produced pyroclastic flows following the collapse of the summit lava dome. We used Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data acquired by JERS-1 and RADARSAT-1 satellites from April 1996 to July 2006 to clarify the distribution patterns of the pyroclastic flow deposits. The extent of the deposits, termed P-zones, was accurately extracted by ratio operation and low-level feature extraction from SAR intensity images. These images highlighted temporal changes of the distribution area, perimeter, flow distance, included angle, and collapse direction. To validate the image-processing results, reflectance spectra of the rock samples collected after the eruption in June 2006 were measured in a laboratory. The reflectance spectra of all samples showed similar characteristics to the reference spectra, which were derived from atmospheric correction of Hyperion sensor image data covering the lava dome at the summit. Therefore, P-zones were confirmed to be the pyroclastic flow deposits originating from destruction of the lava dome at the summit. The image-processing results clarified that the extent of the distribution areas, perimeter, flow distances, and included angle of the P-zones were variable among the eruptions, while the collapse direction had a constant pattern. The collapse pattern followed a clockwise change from the south toward the west. By comparing the ratio maps of Bouguer gravity anomaly data in two periods, the change was interpreted to originate from the inclination of the conduit and the formation of shallow and deep magma reservoirs.